Justin Verlander would never admit it, but the Astros' — and his — win over the Phillies in Game 5 of the World Series undoubtedly tasted just a little sweeter for the 39-year-old ace.
Verlander's season has been remarkable in a vacuum. He's going to win the AL Cy Young — the third of his career and his second with Houston — behind a 1.75 ERA in his first season back from Tommy John surgery in 2020. He passed Clayton Kershaw in career postseason strikeouts earlier this postseason. And now, for the first time, he has a World Series win to add to his resume.
Verlander had previously started eight World Series games with the Tigers and Astros, going 0-6 while his team went 1-7. In those games, Verlander had a 6.07 ERA, including five runs allowed in Game 1 of this series against the Phillies.
Thursday, however, he got the monkey off his back, going five innings and giving up one run — a leadoff home run to Kyle Schwarber — while bobbing and weaving in and out of trouble all game. His stuff wasn't its best. He walked four and struck out six while giving up four hits, and he was already at 94 pitches (58 strikes) when he exited. But it was its best when it had to be.
MORE: Astros' defense preserves Justin Verlander's first World Series win
Of paramount importance: The win gave the Astros a 3-2 lead in the World Series and brought them within one win of the second championship for the Astros (and Verlander). Verlander got the ball for the swing game. And he could be available from the bullpen for a potential Game 7.
How Justin Verlander got his first World Series win
There were two at-bats that ultimately defined Verlander's first Fall Classic victory. One of them came against Rhys Hoskins in the second inning. The other was against Nick Castellanos in the fifth.
The Sporting News looks at both of those at-bats and what made them so special.
Rhys Hoskins, second inning
This is, quite possibly, an at-bat that saved the game early for the Astros.
Verlander was in a bases loaded, two-out jam — a hell of his own making — in the bottom of the second for Houston. He had walked Brandon Marsh and Schwarber back to back after a Jean Segura single to bring up Hoskins.
Verlander was aggressive against Hoskins, attacking him with three sliders to start the at-bat. Hoskins swung at the first two, whiffing on the first and fouling off the second. He then took one in the dirt (which it must be noted was expertly blocked by Martin Maldonado to save a run).
On the fourth pitch, Verlander tapped back into his late Tigers years, rearing back and touching 98 mph with a four-seam, but he was overzealous and missed badly.
Then came the fifth pitch, arguably his best pitch of the night: A slider at the bottom of the zone that he got Hoskins to whiff on to get out of his jam.
The slider was 90 mph and had his signature bite down, good enough to get Verlander out of the inning.
MORE: Jeremy Peña makes World Series rookie history: How Astros SS has set himself apart
Nick Castellanos, fifth inning
This 10-pitch at-bat was just a battle of wills, and it immediately followed a Harper double to left field.
Verlander fell behind 2-0 to Castellanos, but he evened up the count not with fastballs, but with sliders. Two sliders in on Castellanos' hands. From there, Verlander tried to fool Castellanos with three different pitches in a row, going fastball-slider-changeup in rapid succession.
Verlander then threw Castellanos two straight curveballs, the first for a ball and the second fouled off. On the 10th pitch, he finally got Castellanos to fly out with a slider off the plate.
When broadcasts talk about high-leverage situations, this is what they mean. These were Verlander's two biggest at-bats of the game, and they came in situations where the Phillies could have gone ahead or at least tied things up. Verlander's ability to work against Hoskins and Castellanos were what put him in a position to get this win, despite not having his pinpoint accuracy Thursday.
Now, of course, the Astros are fixated on one prize: the Commissioner's Trophy. It's within their grasp now, partially thanks to Verlander. But for Verlander's part, no one can say he hasn't won a World Series start anymore. Although, he may still have a chip on his shoulder about that 1-6 record.
