LOS ANGELES — Justin Verlander worked Games 2 and 6 of the World Series at Dodger Stadium last year. His Astros won the first and lost the second. He won neither, which isn’t as big a deal for today’s pitchers as it was for yesterday’s. And when Houston won Game 7 and took its first championship, his eyes were as blazingly wild as anyone’s.
But when Verlander returned for Friday’s game with the Dodgers, dubbed “Game 8” by some local fans who haven’t yet accepted the result, he had a little trash to pick up. He took the same Cooperstown-bound stuff to the mound. This time he walked off with a 2-1 victory that was reminiscent of last October, except not quite as hot.
“This wasn’t like some mid-week game,” Verlander said, grinning. “I hope the fans realized what a great ballgame it was. People might not like pitchers’ duels, but this was really exciting.
“But you realize how different the World Series is. As intense as this was, that was on another level.”
Last year Verlander went six innings in each game and gave up a total of five hits, with two walks and 14 strikeouts.
On Friday he gave up a leadoff home run to Joc Pederson and was fairly impregnable afterward. He went seven and two-thirds innings, walked one, struck out 14 and gave up three other hits, all singles.
“Completely dominant,” said A.J. Hinch, the Astros manager.
Verlander stayed with a fastball that ranged from 95 to 97 mph. He fanned Max Muncy and Yasmani Grandal three times apiece.
But in the eighth inning, Chris Taylor hopped on a fastball and singled with nobody out. After a fly ball to center by Brian Dozier, Verlander fell behind 3-and-0 to Pederson, and the Dodger Stadium crowd of 53,598 went into a three-point stance.
Pederson banged a fastball that landed just outside the right field fair pole. “I yanked that one, got away with it,” Verlander said. “I got away with one to Dozier, too.”
He threw a better fastball for strike two. Then he and catcher Martin Maldonado, just obtained from the Angels, went into deep conference mode.
“We were on the same page,” Maldonado said. “I went out there and we had the same idea on what the pitch should be.”
The pitch was a slider down and in that Pederson missed with a violent swing. That was Verlander’s 105th and final pitch. Hector Rondon came in to get Manny Machado on a fly ball to right. Rondon stayed in and nailed down the win with a called strike three on Cody Bellinger, who hopped around in protest and stood at the plate long after home umpire Jim Wolf had left.
“That was a slider that looked like a fastball for a long time,” Verlander said. “The way the fastball had been working, he had to respect it.
“I yanked that fastball that he hit out in the first inning. Other than that, most of them went where I wanted them to.”
“There’s a lot of chase down-and-in when you throw it to Pederson,” Hinch said, “but there’s a lot of power there too.”
Verlander is 11-6 with a 2.19 ERA. He found himself pacing purposefully through the visitors’ clubhouse as Rondon did his thing. It reminded him of last fall.
“When I walked in I reminded the guys that a lot of good things happened in this room for us last year,” Verlander said. “There were some good memories.”
“But we didn’t want to overdramatize it,” Hinch said.
The Astros are working without their All-Star mid-infield combo of shortstop Carlos Correa and second baseman Jose Altuve, both hurt. They won’t get their new closer, Roberto Osuna, until Sunday, and a lot of eyes will be on that arrival.
They traded Ken Giles to the Blue Jays for Osuna, who is awaiting trial in Toronto for domestic violence, and he just served an MLB suspension. He will be available for postseason play, and the Astros organization has been blasted for taking him on.
“He’ll come in here Sunday and we’ll all listen objectively to what he has to say,” Verlander said. “It’s probably going to be one of those things that stays in this clubhouse. But we have such a great clubhouse here that I don’t think we’ll let anything get in the way of what we’re doing, no matter what he has to say.”
He was referring to the connectedness of the players in that clubhouse. But the actual room has been a living space for the Astros.
When you’re playing checkers, @JustinVerlander is playing chess. #TipOfTheCap pic.twitter.com/yBimFXElNQ
— MLB (@MLB) August 4, 2018