The Boston Red Sox pose
for a picture after winning the
baseball American League
Championship Series against the
Houston Astros on Thursday, Oct.
18, 2018, in Houston. Red Sox
won 4-1. (AP Photo/David J.
Phillip)
David
Price
reacts
in the
fourth
inning
against
the
Houston
Astros.
(Photo
by
Elsa/Getty
Images)
Red Sox
sail
into
World
Series,
set for
ace
Sale’s
return
HOUSTON
- David
Price,
at last,
looked
like a
postseason
ace.
Craig
Kimbrel
pitched
a
lockdown
inning.
And
much-maligned
Jackie
Bradley
Jr.
became
an MVP.
Most
everything
went
right
for the
Red Sox
as they
sailed
into the
World
Series.
Now the
big
question
for
Boston:
Is
everything
all
right
with ace
Chris
Sale?
“We’re
not
perfect.
That’s
the cool
thing
about
this
team. We
feel
that we
can keep
improving.
And we
have one
more
series
to go,”
triumphant
manager
Alex
Cora
said
Thursday
night.
On
his 43rd
birthday,
Cora
became
the
first
manager
from
Puerto
Rico to
take a
team to
the
World
Series.
The club
that led
the
majors
with 108
wins
this
season
eliminated
the
defending
champion
Houston
Astros
with a
4-1
victory,
taking
the AL
Championship
Series
4-1.
After
the Red
Sox
surrounded
Cora in
the
clubhouse
and sang
“happy
birthday!”
to their
rookie
skipper,
they
began
turning
their
attention
to next
week.
Game
1 of the
World
Series
is
Tuesday
night at
Fenway
Park
against
the Los
Angeles
Dodgers
or
Milwaukee
Brewers.
The
Dodgers
hold a
3-2 lead
in the
NLCS
going
into
Game 6
on
Friday
night at
Miller
Park.
The
Red Sox
will try
to bring
Boston
its
fourth
crown in
15 years
— this
is their
first
World
Series
trip
since
winning
it all
in 2013.
Those
extra
days off
at home
will
give
Sale
even
more
time to
rest up.
The
seven-time
All-Star
has been
regaining
strength
since
his
release
Monday
from
Massachusetts
General
Hospital,
where he
spent
Sunday
night
for
observation
because
of a
stomach
illness.
The club
hasn’t
specified
Sale’s
ailment
or
treatment.
Cora
said
before
Thursday
night’s
game
that the
lefty
ace was
prepared
for his
next
start —
either
in the
ALCS or
the
World
Series
opener.
“We
knew the
skinny
guy was
ready
for Game
6,” Cora
said
after
Price
and the
Red Sox
finished
off the
Astros.
Sale
went
12-4
with a
2.11 ERA
this
season,
but was
limited
down the
stretch
because
of
shoulder
trouble.
His
velocity
dipped
in the
playoffs,
where he
won the
AL
Division
Series
opener
against
the New
York
Yankees
and also
relieved
in the
clinching
Game 4.
Sale
lost the
ALCS
opener
to
Houston,
working
four
uneven
innings.
After
recently
losing
weight,
he threw
on flat
ground
Thursday,
leading
Cora to
say Sale
was
ready.
The
rest of
the Red
Sox look
locked
in.
Price
had been
0-9 with
a 6.16
ERA in
11
career
postseason
starts
before
holding
Houston
to three
hits in
six
shutout
innings,
striking
out
nine.
The
2012 AL
Cy Young
Award
winner
was
thrilled
he won’t
be asked
again
about
that
zero in
the win
column.
“That’s
awesome,”
Price
said. “I
don’t
have to
prepare
myself
for it
in
spring
training
on Feb.
20 or
September
when
I’ve
still
got five
regular-season
starts.
I don’t
have to
answer
that
question
anymore.
And man,
it feels
good.”
Cora
felt
equally
good
after
watching
Price
outpitch
October
star
Justin
Verlander
for the
victory.
“There
was a
lot of
noise,”
Cora
said. “I
heard
somebody
today on
TV just
blasting
David,
blasting
him,
calling
him the
worst
pitcher
in the
postseason.
Yeah,
the
numbers
are
there, I
know,
but he
was
saying
this —
he
didn’t
hesitate.
It was a
bad
matchup,
one of
the
greatest
against
the
worst
and all
that.”
“I
don’t
listen
too much
to
what’s
going on
outside,
but that
one got
me,” he
added.
“But you
know
what?
I’m
happy
that
David
showed
up
today.
And
tomorrow
we can
turn the
page and
move on
to the
World
Series
with
David
Price.”
Kimbrel,
who’s
had some
shaky
outings
lately,
threw a
hitless
ninth
for his
fifth
save
this
postseason.
Boston
slugger
J.D.
Martinez
homered
and star
outfielders
Mookie
Betts
and
Andrew
Benintendi
made
running
catches
in the
clincher.
Bradley,
stuck in
a slump
for much
of the
season,
batted
just
.200 and
his
three
hits
were the
fewest
for any
position
player
to win
MVP of a
league
championship
series.
But he
did
plenty
of
damage
with a
grand
slam,
two-run
homer
and a
three-run
double.
“There’s
nobody
on this
team
that I
can
think of
in
baseball
that
deserves
it more
than
Jackie,”
Price
said.
“He
continues
to push
forward
through
everything
that he
has to
go
through.
Watching
him line
out,
hitting
balls
100-plus
miles an
hour
routinely
this
year and
last
year, to
see him
get that
MVP
award,
to get
those
big
hits,
I’m so
pumped
for
him.”