Astros' Justin Verlander becomes MLB's all-time leader in postseason strikeouts
Houston Astros veteran ace Justin Verlander pitched six strong innings, striking out 11 batters in a 4-2 Game 1 victory over the New York Yankees in Game 1 of the American League Championship Series on Wednesday night.
Verlander's 11 punchouts in Game 1 gave him 219 for his career, surpassing Los Angeles Dodgers star Clayton Kershaw for the most postseason strikeouts in baseball history.
Among the top 10, only Verlander (219), Kershaw (213) and Max Scherzer (164) are active, with Yankees starter Gerrit Cole sitting just outside the top 10 with 127 postseason Ks.
After wiggling out of some early trouble throughout the first three innings on Wednesday, Verlander settled in nicely.
Verlander said he "let it all hang out" early to get back into a rhythm.
"That early in the game, not trying to be so intense," Verlander told reporters after the game. "But, in the playoffs, you don't have that luxury. So I gave everything I had to get a couple strikeouts and was able to do that. And from there, that kind of mentality, 'just keep making your pitches, ' and a couple adjustments I was able to make fairly quickly on the off-speed stuff, and it really paid off.
At one point, Verlander tied the record for consecutive strikeouts with six, a playoff feat he accomplished for the second time in his career.
According to MLB.com's Sarah Langs, Verlander is the second-oldest pitcher in playoff history to post 10 strikeouts or more in a start. The oldest? Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan. Ryan was just 15 days older than Verlander when he reached the milestone in Game 5 of the 1986 NLCS.
Verlander's 10-plus strikeout game was the eighth of his career, giving him two more than anyone else in baseball history, per Langs.
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