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HOUSTON — The Astros quickly ran out of superlatives in describing Justin Verlander‘s performance in their 4-2 victory over the New York Yankees in Game 1 of the American League Championship Series on Wednesday night.

Echoes of “first-ballot Hall of Famer” and “ace” were heard throughout the Astros clubhouse after Verlander struck out 11 batters over six innings and allowed only one earned run.

But what truly differentiated his performance was the fact that the 39-year-old Verlander was not initially sharp, coming off one of the worst postseason outings of his illustrious career, having allowed six runs on 10 hits in the first game of the division series against the Seattle Mariners.

The Astros managed a comeback victory against Seattle with a three-run, walk-off home run by slugger Yordan Alvarez, with Verlander notably showing rust and lack of command. Even so, it was no surprise to catcher Martin Maldonado that his ace quickly returned to form when he was needed most.

“This is exactly what I expected from him,” Maldonado told ESPN. “That is why he is a Hall of Famer.”

“He’s not only physically strong, which you can see, but he’s mentally strong,” manager Dusty Baker added in praise of Verlander. “This guy, he has mental toughness. When he’s down and out and it looks like you got him in trouble, I mean, this guy, he can dial it up.”

While the Astros fell behind in the second inning Wednesday night after Harrison Bader tagged him with a solo shot, Verlander bounced back, retiring the last 11 Yankees he faced in a row, with nine punch-outs.

Verlander’s 11 total strikeouts gave him the eighth double-digit strikeout game of his postseason career, setting an MLB record. Verlander also became the new postseason strikeout king, setting a major league record with 219 career strikeouts in the playoffs, surpassing Clayton Kershaw‘s 213.

“I think you saw what a real Hall of Fame pitcher’s made of tonight,” fellow starter Lance McCullers Jr. said. “He had a tough start in the DS. You don’t have to beat around the bush; it wasn’t a great start. I know he wanted to do better. … You saw him work all week. He felt like he had some adjustments to make, and he made the adjustments. … In a series where there’s only one off-day, him being able to give us six amazing innings, speaks volumes for who he is as a pitcher and a competitor.”

The Yankees finished the game with 17 strikeouts, tied for the second most in a nine-inning game in postseason history. With the Astros striking out only twice, their differential of 15 strikeouts became the largest in a single game in postseason history.

“He gave us exactly the kind of performance we needed, and I feel that I say that all the time about Verlander,” said Jose Altuve, who is stuck in the longest postseason slump of his career at 0-for-19. “This was a huge win for us, alongside our bullpen, which has been exceptional all season. He set the tone and allowed us to win the first game, which is very important in a tough series like this one, and against a great team like the Yankees.”

Verlander improved to 5-1 with a 2.62 ERA in nine career postseason starts against the Yankees. This was Verlander’s 15th career postseason win, tying Hall of Famer John Smoltz for second all-time (Andy Pettitte leads with 19).

The Astros improved to 10-5 all-time in postseason play against New York, including a 7-1 record at Minute Maid Park.

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Rockies closer Halvorsen (elbow strain) put on IL

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Rockies closer Halvorsen (elbow strain) put on IL

DENVER — The Colorado Rockies have put closer Seth Halvorsen on the 15-day injured list with a right elbow strain after he had to leave Saturday’s win over Pittsburgh.

Interim manager Warren Schaeffer said at the time the injury didn’t look good — following the right-hander’s exit after throwing five pitches in the ninth inning. Halvorsen leads the Rockies with 11 saves.

Colorado also recalled right-hander Nick Anderson and catcher Braxton Fulford from Triple-A Albuquerque on Sunday, and the Rockies optioned infielder Michael Toglia to Albuquerque.

The 25-year-old Halvorsen is 1-2 with a 4.99 ERA this year. He made his big league debut in August of 2024.

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Brewers’ Miz scratched from start, placed on IL

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Brewers' Miz scratched from start, placed on IL

Milwaukee Brewers All-Star rookie Jacob Misiorowski was placed on the injured list with a left tibia contusion prior to his scheduled start against the Washington Nationals on Sunday.

Misiorowski told reporters that he anticipates missing about two starts and being ready to go after the 15 days. The IL move is retroactive to Thursday.

The right-hander took a liner to the shin off the bat of the Chicago CubsSeiya Suzuki in the first inning of his last start Monday. Later in the inning, after fielding a dribbler in front of the mound, Misiorowski’s knee buckled as he threw wildly to first and two runners scored.

The 23-year-old Misiorowski stayed in the game, pitching three more innings before coming out after 80 pitches.

Misiorowski is 4-1 with 47 strikeouts in 33⅓ innings this season.

In a related move, the Brewers recalled right-hander Logan Henderson from Triple-A Nashville, and he is expected to start against the Nationals on Sunday.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Braves-Reds showcase at Bristol stalled by rain

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Braves-Reds showcase at Bristol stalled by rain

BRISTOL, Tenn. — It was a red flag for Major League Baseball at Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday night.

The Speedway Classic between the Atlanta Braves and Cincinnati Reds was suspended in the first inning because of rain, soaking a record-breaking crowd for the first regular-season game in Tennessee. The plan is to resume the game on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET.

The first delay at the historic bullring of a racetrack came after the ceremonial first pitch featuring a pair of Hall of Famers in Johnny Bench and Chipper Jones, joined by NASCAR drivers Kyle Busch and Chase Elliott. The second with one out in the bottom of the first led to the game being pushed back a day.

Fans who stuck out the first delay of 2 hours, 17 minutes started heading toward the exits before the game was postponed with the Reds holding a 1-0 lead.

It was an unwelcome detour for the long-planned event mixing baseball and NASCAR.

“We’re going to suspend tonight’s game. … We are optimistic for a better weather forecast for tomorrow,” Michael Hill, MLB’s senior vice president of on-field operations, told Fox.

The rain made life difficult on the players before the suspension. A bat flew out of TJ Friedl‘s hands as he led off for the Reds. A pitcher seemed to catch his footing going to cover first base.

The Speedway Classic was announced nearly a year ago as part of commissioner Rob Manfred’s push to take MLB to places where baseball isn’t played every day live. MLB played a game at the “Field of Dreams” movie site in Iowa in 2021 and 2022. Games have been held in Alabama and North Carolina too.

Reds pitcher Andrew Abbott showed up Saturday afternoon at Bristol wearing a cutoff version of a NASCAR race suit. Born in Lynchburg, Virginia, Abbott said he wanted something to wear in for a special game.

“I grew up around NASCAR,” Abbott said. “Just went on eBay and found a couple options, and luckily that was the one that arrived in time. I had a couple of backups. I know who Rusty Wallace is too, so I actually do know the backstory behind it.”

Long before the fans departed in the rain, they were entertained by a 110-foot Ferris wheel along with food trucks, live music, pitching tunnels and batting cages. Fans also had a chance for photos with the Commissioner’s Trophy and Clydesdales outside the historic racetrack.

Inside, star Tim McGraw performed and was joined by Pitbull.

Before the weather moved over the area, players stood in the back of pickup trucks with their numbers emblazoned on the side and rode around the half-mile racetrack. Some used their phones to document the moment. For introductions, the Braves and Reds walked between a pair of cars decked out in Atlanta and Cincinnati colors.

Then the tarp came out as rain that had been falling around Bristol much of Saturday turned heavy and delayed the start.

The first delay led to the Braves switching starting pitchers. Spencer Strider, who grew up in nearby Knoxville, got a bigger ovation than Reds starter Chase Burns, who is from Hendersonville and played at the University of Tennessee. The Reds stuck with Burns despite the delay.

Strider warmed up. The Braves chose not to risk his third start in this situation coming off a second elbow surgery and turned to Austin Cox.

The rain stopped long enough to take off the tarp and start the game.

Michael Waltrip, who raced plenty at Bristol, restarted the festivities by quoting his brother Darrell: “Boogity, boogity, boogity. Let’s play baseball, boys!”

Atlanta went down in order in the top of the first inning. But there was another rain delay after Austin Hays hit an RBI single for Cincinnati in the bottom half.

MLB didn’t try to sell every ticket inside the speedway that drew 156,990 for the Battle of Bristol college football game in 2016. The track with a racing capacity of 146,000 could host 90,000 or more even with sections blocked off.

Officials announced Monday that more than 85,000 tickets had been sold, topping the previous paid attendance of 84,587 set Sept. 12, 1954, when Cleveland Stadium hosted the New York Yankees.

A batter has to clear 400 feet to hit anything out of center field, 375 in the alleys and 330 down each baseline. Pulling a ball down the line raises the prospect of a ball bouncing off the racetrack beyond the outfield wall.

“Honestly, my first thought: I can’t believe they did all this for one game,” Braves first baseman Matt Olson said of his first visit to Bristol. “To be able to set all this up, get a playing surface ready, set the stands up in order to have the proper viewing, it’s pretty incredible.”

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