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HOUSTON – You can interrupt all this opening speech.
At least for this ALDS.
Friday at Minute Maid Park, the Cyber Hardball will be out of date when it comes to start throwing. Match 1 between Justin Verlander of the Astros and Corey Kluber of the Indians could be a match for the age.
Even if baseball has changed, having an ace makes a world of difference, and teams have to remember that. If the Yankees overtake the Red Sox, there will be much more than Liam Hendriks waiting for them on the other side.
The Indian manager, Tito Francona, knows the challenge facing Verlander.
"Oh, my boy, he's one of the best," Francona said Thursday. "He has always done it. It may be five or six years ago, it seemed that he was starting to show signs of wear, and then this problem disappeared. "
Verlander (16-9, 2.52) has made more use of his four-sided fastball and this season he led the American league back (290), quality starts (26), percentage based on the opponent ( .242) and WHIP (0.90). He could win his second Cy Young, at the age of 35.
Of course. Kluber (20-7, 2.89), two-time winner of Cy Young, is one of the best players in Francona. When I asked how comforting it was to have Kluber on the mound, Francona replied, "We love it. I'm sure they feel the same way with Verlander. I think that as an organization or team, you do what you think puts you in the best position. If it's to have a first match, OK. But I know how we feel with Kluber's pitch, that's good, and he deserved it. Same thing with Verlander.
"Sometimes you have to think outside the box to get where you are going. If we have to do it at some point, we may do it. "
Then Francona smiled and added, "Not tomorrow."
The launch of Francona is in good shape, it is his enclosure which poses problem. And for the first three games of the reigning World Series champion, Astros, they are going to launch Verlander, Gerrit Cole and Dallas Keuchel. Not bad.
There is a rhythm and know-how to start.
"There is more energy," Verlander said of a post-season start. "There is more emotion, more nerves, all that.
"It's important, I think you look at most teams in the playoffs and they have well-defined beginners, and we and the Indians are probably one and two years old."
Astros manager A.J. Hinch put things into perspective by saying, "I love entries. Why? Because I have good ones. ''
What makes Verlander so successful, Hinch said, is: "It's constantly evolving. While everyone expects JV to be successful and overall successful, it is constantly evolving. He had this departure circled for a while now. He has a long history with the Indians. He will have to find ways to fight against the successes or failures he has experienced, and he does so every time.
"Having this state of mind and having this ability to evolve as the game gets younger around it, it gets older. When people think that his business will decline, he throws more. When the guys start to hit his breaking ball, he arrives with a cutter. He always does something to evolve. "
Imagine that, a starting pitcher in evolution and not just a robot. Baseball has started on this path: "Where did all the starters go?" A few years ago, when he paid so much attention to the miners' throwing account that he prevented the pitcher from learning to play. get out of difficult situations.
The big guys will find a way, and Verlander and Kluber will expose it all on Friday. When starters are around other talented beginners, they learn.
"Gerrit thinks differently than me," Verlander said of Cole's impact on him. "He and I had good conversations, just exchanging ideas, about pitchers, mechanics, throwing against some guys and why. To be a fly on the wall in some of these conversations is pretty thorough. "
This Cy Young game 1, as Francona pointed out, should be fun to watch.
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