Justin Verlander Strikes out 7, Michael Brantley Homers as Astros Top Mariners
Four months after Opening Day was originally scheduled, the Houston Astros opened a 60-game season Friday with an 8-2 victory over the Seattle Mariners at an empty Minute Maid Park.
The coronavirus pandemic has reduced a 162-game season to a two-month sprint for the postseason with no fans currently allowed in the stands.
For Houston, it's the first game since a report in February confirmed a yearslong cheating scandal in which the club used a center field camera to steal and decode signs, including during its World Series-winning campaign in 2017.
The Astros were fined $5 million, lost first- and second-round picks in the 2020 and 2021 drafts and saw general manager Jeff Luhnow and field manager AJ Hinch suspended for a year. The club fired them after the report's findings were published.
MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred granted players immunity for honest testimony about the scheme, leading to ire from clubs around the league.
Friday was the first chance for a team to face Houston since the scandal was exposed, but the outcome didn't provide any relief for AL West rival Seattle.
Notable Performers
Justin Verlander, RHP, Houston Astros: 6.0 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 7 K
Michael Brantley, LF, Houston Astros: 3 AB, 1 R, 2 H, 3 RBI, 1 BB, 1 HR
Kyle Seager, 3B, Seattle Mariners: 4 AB, 1 R, 1 H, 1 RBI, 1 HR
Kyle Lewis, CF, Seattle Mariners: 4 AB, 1 R, 1 H, 1 RBI, 1 HR
Astros Fueled By 5-Run 5th Inning
Houston's lineup appears as unforgiving as ever, and Seattle's third time through the order proved it.
After taking a 2-1 lead through four innings, the fifth forced an unraveling the Mariners couldn't recover from.
Aledmys Diaz got things going with a single to start the frame with catcher Martin Maldonado reaching base on a throwing error that pushed Diaz to third.
One batter later, Jose Altuve smashed a ground ball through the gap at shortstop, and the Astros never looked back. Diaz scored off Altuve's hit, forcing Seattle starter Marco Gonzales out of the game.
Reliever Zac Grotz didn't work out much better. Alex Bregman scored Maldonado with his own single four pitches later and brought Michael Brantley up to the plate.
The 6'2", 209-lb left fielder clobbered a splitter on a 2-1 count for a three-run homer to give Houston a 6-2 lead.
Grotz rebounded with two quick outs by Yuli Gurriel and Carlos Correa, but the crooked number on the scoreboard—plus Justin Verlander on the mound for Houston—halted any momentum the Mariners generated with an early lead.
Verlander On Cruise Control
Justin Verlander has topped 200 innings pitched every season dating back to 2015, so a little extra time off the mound the last four months could go a long way for Houston's ace.
The reigning Cy Young winner proved himself rested with a masterful performance Friday, dominating the Mariners over six innings and needing just 73 pitches in the process. Verlander even retired 12 of the first 14 batters he faced, though the remaining two proved his only costly mistakes on the evening.
Both Kyle Lewis and Kyle Seager launched home runs off the 37-year-old, but a fifth-inning rally provided all the support he needed for Houston to pick up its eighth consecutive Opening Day victory.
It was Verlander's slider in particular that seemed to fool the Mariners most.
The veteran went to the breaking ball early and often, using it 27 times and inducing eight swinging strikes, according to Baseball Savant. No other pitch worked better.
What's Next
The teams will face off again Saturday at 4:10 p.m. ET in the second of a four-game series at Houston. Lance McCullers Jr. is slated to start for the Astros against the Mariners' Taijuan Walker.
