Astros Dominate White Sox in ALDS Game 1 Behind Lance McCullers' 6.2 Shutout Innings

The Houston Astros gained an upper hand on the Chicago White Sox with a 6-1 victory in Game 1 of the American League Division Series on Thursday at Minute Maid Park.

Jake Meyers got the first run on the board with an RBI single to right field in the second inning. After the Astros plated two more runs in the third, Michael Brantley broke the game open with a two-run single.

Lance McCullers Jr. was excellent on the mound, pitching into the seventh and leaving with two outs after having held Chicago scoreless on four hits.

The blood pressure of Astros fans rose a bit in the eighth after Jose Abreu's RBI single gave the White Sox their first run. With runners on first and second and two outs, Kendall Graveman got Yasmani Grandal to line out to center to end the threat.

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Notable Performers

Lance McCullers Jr., SP, Astros: 6.2 innings, four hits, four strikeouts

Yordan Alvarez, DH, Astros: 2-for-3, HR, two runs, two RBI, one walk

Michael Brantley, LF, Astros: 2-for-4, two RBI

Lance Lynn, SP, White Sox: 3.2 innings, six hits, five earned runs, two walks, four strikeouts

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Alvarez Anchors Offensive Outburst

Houston owned one of MLB's best offenses, finishing third in slugging percentage (.444) and second in weighted on-base average (.336), according to FanGraphs. The lineup didn't waste any time ramping up the pressure on Lance Lynn and chased him out of the game before he completed the fourth inning.

Yordan Alvarez set the tone out of the cleanup spot.

In the third inning, it looked like he might have cleared the fences before his deep drive to left center hit off the base of the wall. Two innings later, the 2019 American League Rookie of the Year left no doubt.

Thanks to the work of McCullers, the offense didn't need to do too much. More impressive than the zero runs he allowed was the fact he didn't walk a single batter after having averaged 4.2 walks per nine innings in the regular season.

Having McCullers get so deep into the game was a nice luxury for manager Dusty Baker since he didn't have to tax his bullpen too much. Graveman's tense inning was also a reminder that Houston's relievers are probably the team's weakest area.

All in all, Game 1 couldn't have gone much better for the Astros.

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Halloween Comes Early for Lynn

The Astros were a boogeyman for Lynn before Thursday's outing. 

He's 5-7 with a 4.41 ERA in 14 appearances against Houston in the regular season, and the team really had his number over the past few years. Per Stathead, the right-hander surrendered 29 earned runs over 29.2 innings in his last five starts.

Lynn was unable to reverse the trend in Game 1. The Astros were hitting the ball and they were hitting it very hard.

Hindsight is always 20/20 and Lynn's performance in the regular season made him a logical choice to open the series. But his poor showing will likely lead many to question whether Tony La Russa should've opted for Lucas Giolito in this spot instead.

Granted, the identity of the Game 1 starter didn't matter too much because the offense had no answer for McCullers. Yasmani Grandal was hitless in four at-bats, while Gavin Sheets, Adam Engel and Leury Garcia combined to go 0-for-11.

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What's Next?

The teams will be back in action Friday at 2:07 p.m. ET. Giolito is scheduled to pitch for the White Sox, and Framber Valdez will take the bump for the Astros.