‘So clutch’: Altuve again puts Astros on WS brink
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Buster Olney, ESPN Senior Writer
ARLINGTON, Texas — The Houston Astros are on the verge of reaching the World Series, again, because of Jose Altuve.
Altuve clubbed a three-run homer off Texas Rangers reliever Jose Leclerc in the top of the ninth inning, and after barely holding a lead through the bottom of the ninth, Houston — which had lost the first two games of the American League Championship Series — completed a sweep of three games here Friday night.
Houston needs only to win Game 6 or Game 7 to capture the best-of-seven series and advance to the World Series for the fifth time in the past seven seasons.
“That’s one of the craziest games I ever played in,” Altuve said on the field after the game, and he wasn’t exaggerating. In the last three innings were two lead-changing homers, three ejections (one including Houston manager Dusty Baker), a brief delay as Baker refused to leave the Astros dugout, and a leaping catch in the bottom of the ninth inning by a fielder making his first-ever appearance on defense in a postseason game.
“That was a huge, huge victory,” Baker said. “That will go down in history.”
Added Rangers manager Bruce Bochy: “It’s just a tough one, no getting around it. It’s part of the game and what you have to deal with. And good clubs deal with it in the right way, and these guys, they’ll put this behind them.”
It had appeared the Rangers would win this emotional game, after coming back against a future Hall of Famer. The Astros took a 2-1 lead in the top of the sixth inning, and with ace Justin Verlander on the mound and the best Houston relievers fully rested, they were well-positioned to close out the game. But that lead evaporated in the span of three pitches: Corey Seager doubled, Evan Carter singled and Adolis Garcia attacked a fastball, blasting a three-run homer so far that Garcia stood at home plate to admire his work, before slowly moving up the first base line and slamming his bat in celebration.
Verlander bent over at the waist, stunned, and after the half-inning ended, he greeted catcher Martin Maldonado with a look of self-loathing and a sweep of his hand, imitating how his fastball had errantly cut inside when he meant for it to go outside.
The Rangers’ lead was still 4-2 when Garcia came to the plate in the eighth inning; following a Carter walk, Bryan Abreu hit Garcia with a pitch; Garcia immediately turned and confronted Maldonado. According to Maldonado, Garcia said to him, “Why like that?”
“Like what?” Maldonado responded. Both benches emptied, with the Astros’ Yordan Alvarez and others trying to hold Garcia. The umpires met and decided to eject Garcia and Abreu, and when Baker heard the news, he threw his hat, screaming incredulously, and he, too, was ejected. Briefly, Baker refused to leave the Houston bench. Crew chief James Hoye turned to home plate umpire Marvin Hudson and said, “He won’t leave.”
Baker did finally leave, after his hat was retrieved for him, and it was his bench coach, Joe Espada, who officially inserted two pinch-hitters, with both waiting near the on-deck circle as Leclerc warmed up for the ninth.
Leclerc had entered the game in the top of the eighth inning, to get one out. And he had to wait through the Garcia incident, through the umpires’ meeting, through Baker’s ejection and dugout sit-in. A lot of time had passed before Leclerc went out to throw the ninth, and later, Bochy spoke with frustration about how long it took to get action resumed.
“I was concerned about that delay,” Bochy said. “I really was. It was a long one. It was taking too long, to be honest. The whole thing is a bunch of crap, to be honest, what happened there. Who knows what intentions are, but it’s not the first time it’s happened, and couldn’t get the game going again.”
Leclerc said later, “I’m not used to waiting around that long to pitch again, but it’s no excuse. I needed to execute my pitches and do a better job.”
Maldonado suggested after the game that perhaps the Astros had been alighted by the eighth-inning scrum. As Diaz and Singleton prepared to hit in the top of the ninth inning, Altuve grabbed an iPad to watch video of his previous plate appearances against Leclerc, just a reminder of Leclerc’s delivery, how he released the ball, how he had pitched him in the past. In Altuve’s 101st postseason game, there was no need for conversation, any prep.
But Diaz singled and then Singleton, batting for the first time in almost three weeks, calmly waited through six pitches, never swinging and taking a walk. Altuve watched this and said later that the composed plate appearances by the two bench players really helped to calm him, to settle him.
Before the game, Astros third baseman Alex Bregman had marveled at Altuve’s strength, and his standing on some of the all-time postseason leaderships. In the team’s testing, Altuve has the highest jump, the highest pound-for-pound leg press, and he focuses in the offseason on maintaining his core, partly through disciplined eating habits. Bregman confessed that he enjoys soda. Altuve? Never. Through that ethic, Altuve entered this game with 25 career homers in the postseason, second-most all-time to Manny Ramirez’s 29 in the playoffs and World Series. When it comes to the postseason, 5-foot-6 Jose Altuve has a longstanding habit of attacking anything close to the strike zone.
“He’s got a slow heartbeat, and he loves big moments. Number one, he wants to be up there. Number two, he’s got a high concentration level, because that’s what it takes in big moments like that … I mean, this dude is one of the baddest dudes I’ve ever seen, and I’ve seen some great.”
Astros manager Dusty Baker on Jose Altuve
With an 0-1 count, Leclerc threw him a changeup that was low and inside, and Altuve swung. Leclerc wasn’t sure if Altuve’s fly to left field would be long enough to clear the fence, because he didn’t think Altuve had hit the ball especially hard. But watching from second base, Diaz felt immediately that Altuve’s drive to left would clear the fence, because of the relaxed way Altuve followed through, which told him: Altuve knew it was gone.
The second baseman bounced around the bases, as the Astros’ dugout erupted in chaotic celebration. When he got back to the dugout, Altuve made eye contact with hitting coach Alex Cintron in the dugout. “Wow,” Cintron said. “You are unbelievable.”
During this postseason, Altuve has made a point of downplaying his own performance, deflecting inquiries about his hits and place in postseason history like a deft hockey goalie. But in the joyous Houston dugout, among the other players, Altuve’s guard dropped in his response to Cintron.
“I’ve got 26 homers for a reason,” Altuve said, a humblebrag reference to his postseason homers. “So clutch,” said Bregman.
“He’s got a slow heartbeat, and he loves big moments.” Baker said, “Number one, he wants to be up there. Number two, he’s got a high concentration level, because that’s what it takes in big moments like that … I mean, this dude is one of the baddest dudes I’ve ever seen, and I’ve seen some great.”
The Astros had the lead, but in this game, a lead meant nothing. Texas opened the bottom of the ninth with a single, and another single. Marcus Semien smashed a line drive toward shortstop, and Grae Kessinger – who had made his first postseason appearance ever in the top of the ninth inning as a pinch-runner for Singleton and was playing shortstop — leapt into the air and snared the ball.
That was all that was needed to bail out Ryan Pressly, who coaxed Seager into a fly out before striking out rooking Carter, and with that, the Astros collectively exhaled, tumbling out of the dugout. Near second base, Altuve embraced Kessinger, and as all of the Astros came off the field, there was Baker waiting to greet them, hatless, all of them one step closer to becoming the first team to win back-to-back championships since the 1998-2000 Yankees.
The first 12-team College Football Playoff is down to the final two contenders: Notre Dame and Ohio State.
The seventh-seeded Fighting Irish and eighth-seeded Buckeyes will meet Jan. 20 at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium for the CFP National Championship Presented by AT&T. Whichever team wins will end a championship drought. Notre Dame aims for its first title since 1988. Ohio State’s lull isn’t nearly as long, as the Buckeyes won the first CFP championship a decade ago, but given how consistently elite they are, it seems like a while.
Notre Dame’s Marcus Freeman and Ohio State’s Ryan Day are also aiming for their first championships as head coaches, and Freeman’s past will be in the spotlight. Freeman and the Irish lost to the Buckeyes and Day in each of the past two seasons. But after a masterful coaching job this season, Freeman now will face his alma mater — he was an All-Big Ten linebacker for Ohio State under coach Jim Tressel — with everything on the line. Day, meanwhile, can secure the loftiest goal for a team that fell short of earlier ones, but never stopped swinging.
Here’s your first look at the championship matchup and what to expect in the ATL. — Adam Rittenberg
When: Jan. 20 at 7:30 p.m. ET. TV: ESPN
What we learned in the semifinal: Notre Dame’s resilience and situational awareness/execution are undeniably its signature traits and could propel the team to a title. The Irish have overcome injuries all season and did so again against Penn State. They also erased two deficits and continued to hold the edge in the “middle eight” — the final four minutes of the first half and the first four minutes of the second half — while dominating third down on both sides of the ball. Notre Dame can rely on front men such as quarterback Riley Leonard, running back Jeremiyah Love and linebacker Jack Kiser, but also on backup QB Steve Angeli, wide receiver Jaden Greathouse and kicker Mitch Jeter. These Irish fight, and they’re very hard to knock out.
X factor: Greathouse entered Thursday with moderate numbers — 29 receptions, 359 yards, one touchdown — and had only three total catches for 14 yards in the first two CFP games. But he recorded career highs in both receptions (7) and receiving yards (105) and tied the score on a 54-yard touchdown with 4:38 to play. A Notre Dame offense looking for more from its wide receivers, especially downfield, could lean more on Greathouse, who exceeded his receptions total from the previous five games but might be finding his groove at the perfect time. He also came up huge in the clutch, recording all but six of his receiving yards in the second half.
How Notre Dame wins: The Irish won’t have the talent edge in Atlanta, partly because they’ve lost several stars to season-ending injuries, but they have the right traits to hang with any opponent. Notre Dame needs contributions in all three phases and must continue to sprinkle in downfield passes, an element offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock has pushed. And they finally did start seeing results against Penn State. The Irish likely can’t afford to lose the turnover margin, although they can help themselves by replicating their third-down brilliance — 11 of 17 conversions on offense, 3 of 11 conversions allowed on defense — from the Penn State win. — Rittenberg
What we learned in the semifinal: The Buckeyes have a defense with championship mettle, headlined by senior defensive end Jack Sawyer, who delivered one of the biggest defensive plays in Ohio State history. On fourth-and-goal with just over two minutes remaining, Sawyer sacked Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers, forcing a fumble that he scooped up and raced 83 yards for a game-clinching touchdown, propelling Ohio State to the national title game. The Buckeyes weren’t perfect in the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic, and they struggled offensively for much of the night against a talented Texas defense. But Ohio State showed late why its defense is arguably the best in college football, too.
X factor: The play two snaps before the Sawyer scoop-and-score set the table. On second-and-goal from the Ohio State 1-yard line, unheralded senior safety Lathan Ransom dashed past incoming blockers and dropped Texas running back Quintrevion Wisner for a 7-yard loss. After an incomplete pass, the Longhorns were forced into desperation mode on fourth-and-goal down a touchdown with just over two minutes remaining. All-American safety Caleb Downs, who had an interception on Texas’ ensuing drive, rightfully gets all the headlines for the Ohio State secondary. But the Buckeyes have other veteran standouts such as Ransom throughout their defense.
How Ohio State wins: Texas took away Ohio State’s top offensive playmaker, true freshman wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, who had only one reception for 3 yards on three targets. As the first two playoff games underscored, the Buckeyes offense is at its best when Smith gets the ball early and often. Notre Dame is sure to emulate the Texas blueprint, positioning the defensive backs to challenge Smith. Ohio State offensive coordinator Chip Kelly has to counter with a plan that finds ways to get the ball into Smith’s hands, no matter what the Fighting Irish do. — Jake Trotter
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Doug Greenberg, ESPN
Ohio State opened as a 9.5-point favorite over Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff National Championship Presented by AT&T, per ESPN BET odds.
If that line holds, it would be tied for the second-largest spread in a CFP national championship game and the fourth largest in the CFP/BCS era. Georgia was -13.5 against TCU in the 2022 national championship, while Alabama showed -9.5 against none other than Ohio State to decide the 2020 campaign. Both favorites covered the spread in blowout fashion, combining for a cover margin of 63.
Notre Dame is 12-3 against the spread this season, tied with Arizona State (12-2) and Marshall (12-1) for the most covers in the nation. The Irish are 7-0 ATS against ranked teams and 2-0 ATS as underdogs, with both covers going down as outright victories, including their win over Penn State (-1.5) in the CFP national semifinal.
However, Notre Dame was also on the losing end of the largest outright upset of the college football season when it fell as a 28.5-point favorite to Northern Illinois.
Ohio State is 9-6 against the spread and has been a favorite in every game it has played this season; it has covered the favorite spread in every CFP game thus far, including in its semifinal win against Texas when it covered -6 with overwhelming public support.
The Buckeyes also have been an extremely popular pick in the futures market all season. At BetMGM as of Friday morning, OSU had garnered a leading 28.2% of money and 16.8% of bets to win the national title, checking in as the sportsbook’s greatest liability.
Ohio State opened at +700 to win it all this season and is now -350 with just one game to play.
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