After an 11-4 rout of the Houston Astros in Game 7 of the ALCS, the Texas Rangers are heading to their 3rd World Series appearance ever. The Rangers have taken the American League Pennant, anxiously awaiting Game 7 of the NLCS to see who their competition will be. The Rangers scored 20 total runs in the final two ALCS games to outslug the Astros. The Texas Rangers earned their chance at their first World Series championship. The Rangers dominated the Astros from start to finish, scoring at least one run in 5 of the 9 innings.
W: Jordan Montgomery (3-0) L: Cristian Javier (2-1)
Max Scherzer, Rangers:
Max Scherzer took the mound for the Rangers in Game 7, hoping to rebound from his poor performance in Game 3. Scherzer mostly served as an opener rather than a starter, as he only went 2.2 innings, yielding 2 earned runs on 4 hits and a walk. Scherzer didn’t have a great day by any means, but he was able to limit the damage when the Astros got runners on. The veteran was also able to keep Houston in the contest, unlike in Game 3 where Scherzer gave up 5 runs in the first 4 innings.
Scherzer’s ability to get out of tough situations was critical in retaining the Rangers’ lead throughout the game. In the bottom of the 1st inning, the Astros got a run on the board to make the score 3-1 Texas. After this event, Houston had runners on the corners with 1 out. Scherzer was able to induce an inning-ending double play from Michael Brantley. In the bottom of the 2nd inning, Houston had a runner on 2nd with 1 out, but Scherzer settled in and struck out the next 2 batters to end the inning. It wasn’t a clean night at all from the veteran, but he was able to limit the damage and protect Texas’ lead.
Cristian Javier, Astros:
Cristian Javier’s night was finished before it even began.
Javier was coming off two incredible outings, posting a 1.69 ERA in those two starts. However, in Game 7, Javier didn’t even go a full inning. Javier’s final line was 0.1 innings pitched, giving up 3 earned runs on 4 hits and a walk. The young righty’s only out was a hard-hit 96 MPH ground ball from Marcus Semien.
Cristian Javier was way too reliant upon his four-seam fastball. Both home runs he gave up were on the four-seamer. He threw the fastball on 65% of the 23 pitches he hurled and he tossed the slider on 30% of those 23 pitches. When a pitcher relies on only two pitches, it usually won’t end well. Javier’s slider had a -2 Run Value (average is 0) in 2023, but in 2022, the slider had a Run Value of 8. The slider took a huge step back in 2023 and it left the fastball hanging without an effective complementary pitch.
Javier’s slider will have to turn back to 2022-form for Houston to have an effective rotation in 2024.
Offensive Breakdown, Rangers:
The Rangers have completely turned their offensive attack around. They scored 11 runs on 15 hits during Game 7. The mark of 11 runs was crucial in a Game 7 and it put plenty of pressure on both Houston’s pitching staff and offence. Texas got off to a great start, with Corey Seager crushing a 440 FT home run to give the Rangers a 1-0 lead. They piled on with 2 more runs in the first through RBI singles from star Adolis Garcia and catcher Mitch Garver.
In the top of the 3rd frame, Adolis Garcia crushed an oppo-taco 368 feet to right field to extend the lead to 4-1. Fast forward to the top of the 4th inning, rookie phenom Evan Carter roped a 2-run double to right field, piling onto Texas lead. Adolis Garcia stepped up to the dish and slapped a 2-run single to left field, making the score 8-2. With the Astros being famous for postseason comebacks, Texas didn’t want to stop.
In the top of the 6th frame, first baseman Nate Lowe unloaded on a slider from Bryan Abreu and crushed it to right field with a man on for a 2-run shot. The score was now 10-2, with Texas in a mightily favourable spot. To cap off an elite ALCS, Adolis Garcia walloped a solo home run with an exit velocity of 107.3 MPH to make the score 11-4. The Rangers’ offence continued their momentum from Game 6 and it carried them to the 11-4 win.
Offensive Breakdown, Astros:
The Houston Astros had a rather lackluster night offensively.
Houston was able to get to Max Scherzer early on, with Jose Abreu driving in a run by way of an RBI single. They could have had many more runs this inning, however, if Michael Brantley didn’t ground into an inning-ending double play in the bottom of the first inning. Houston left 23 men on base this game, in comparison to the Rangers only leaving 15 men on base. The lack of timely hits resulted in the Astros only driving in only 4 runs.
Third baseman Alex Bregman roped a solo shot to left field, making the score 4-2. Yordan Alvarez crushed a triple to deep left field, but the Astros couldn’t capitalize on this scoring opportunity. Houston added on a few irrelevant runs in the bottoms of the 7th and 9th innings through a Yordan Alvarez RBI single and a Jose Altuve solo home run.
Houston seemed off-balance all night, especially with the Rangers bringing in many different pitchers with many different playstyles. Max Scherzer averages 94 MPH with his four-seam fastball and relies on the swing-and-miss stuff. Jordan Montgomery is completely different from Scherzer, averaging 93 MPH on his sinking fastball and relying on weak contact to reach success. Texas then went to Josh Sborz, Aroldis Chapman, and Jose Leclerc. These pitchers are all considered “fireballers,” averaging over 95 MPH with the fastball. The differentiation between pitchers and pitching styles resulted in Houston being off-balance.
In the end, Houston couldn’t register the timely hits against the Rangers’ pitching staff.
Top Performers, Rangers:
Corey Seager (SS) – 3-5, 2 Runs, HR, RBI, BB
Evan Carter (LF) – 1-4, 2 Runs, 2 RBI, BB, SB
Adolis Garcia (RF) – 4-5, 3 Runs, 2 HR, 5 RBI, SB
Nate Lowe (1B) – 1-4, Run, HR, 2 RBI, BB
Jordan Montgomery (RP) – 2.1 IP, 3 Hits, 0 ER, K
Top Performers, Astros:
Jose Altuve (2B) – 2-5, 2 Runs, HR, RBI
Alex Bregman (3B) – 2-4, 2 Runs, HR, RBI, BB
Yordan Alvarez (DH) – 3-4, RBI,
Jose Abreu (1B) – 2-5, RBI
Hector Neris (RP) – 1.1 IP, K, 2 BB
Game 1 of the World Series goes on Friday, October 27 at 8:03 PM EST. Home teams were 0-7 in the ALCS, so Texas will have to get their act together at Globe Life Field to win their first World Series title.
(AP Photo/David J. Phillip)