The Tampa Bay Rays lost Game 1 of the ALDS 6-2 to the Houston Astros on Friday, and the story was pretty simple.
Astros ace Justin Verlander threw seven shutout innings, giving up just one hit and striking out eight. The Rays were completely stymied, and on the rare occasion that Verlander got in a bit of trouble, he induced a pair of Tommy Pham double plays to get out of it.
Rays manager Kevin Cash didn’t even try to make excuses and simply tipped his cap after the game.
Rays manager Kevin Cash: “We got Verlander’d.”
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) October 4, 2019
More or less, that’s about it. Verlander’s performance will count as one of the best of his postseason career, and the Rays never really had a chance. The fact that he wants to pitch for a lot longer should make other teams shudder.
