Aaron Judge hit his first bro bomb of the 2024 MLB postseason, a two-run blast to centerfield in the seventh inning of the NY Yankees’ 6-3 win over Cleveland to take a 2-0 lead in the ALCS.
Dusty Baker Gets Postseason Win No. 56 | Marcus Semien On The Wrong Side Of Luck In Game 4 Of ALCS
The American League Championship Series is tied at 2-2 after Houston’s 10-3 win over the Texas Rangers on
Marcus Semien was on the wrong side of luck in Game Four after he was tagged out on his batting gloves after a line drive in the Ranger final attempt at a rally in what ended up being a 10-3 loss to Dusty Baker and his Astros.
Baseball is a game of inches and that is the reality Semien will have to flush and deal with after he was caught too far off of first base after a line drive straight to Jose Abreu.
“Just bad luck, if I sprint back on that liner, I probably get hit with the ball,” Semien told reporters postgame when describing the play that felt like the final dagger in the backs of Texas.
“Just a tough play and a good play by Abreu.”
Texas trailed 7-3 and had their first two batters of the inning reach base in the bottom of the fifth inning.
Semien, who began the game with a 103 MPH line out to center field ended the night 1-for-4 and is still batting under .200 in the ALCS, singled before being called out after instant replay showed he was tagged on his gloves.
“I have worn my gloves in my back pocket my entire career and that has never happened,” said Semien.
“Of course, in the ALCS it happens. It is tough, you want to get a big inning there. We get two hits; Corey hits the ball hard and instead there are two outs.
ALCS Tied At 2-2: Now A Three-Game Series
After securing postseason career win #56 Dusty Baker and the Astros evened up the series at 2-2, making it a best-of-three from here on out.
Houston was 8-for-16 with runners in scoring position in Game Four and the top five hitters in his lineup were 9-for-19 for a .474 average with eight RBI, five walks and eight runs scored.
Game Five will begin Friday afternoon at 4 P.M. Central time in Arlington.
With a lefty on the mound for Texas, Michael Brantley will probably be looked to be used off the bench as a weapon at the plate.
Dusty Baker Gets His 55th Career Playoff Win | Slows Down the Texas Rangers Playoff Machine In ALCS Game 3
Dusty Baker’s Boyz get in the win column in Game 3 of the American League Championship series with an 8-5 road victory Wednesday night thanks to the help of a few lineup tweaks and a Michael Brantley game-saving catch.
Meanwhile for the Rangers, they are in need of a hero in the form of their leadoff hitter who needs to step up at the plate for the remainder of the series.
Dusty Baker Gets 55th Playoff Win
Dropping the first two games of a best-of-seven series at home was not the most ideal way for Baker to complete his task of returning to the World Series for a second straight season.
To help spark the Astros, he made some changes to the lineup which included moving Michael Brantley up to second in the order while dropping Kyle Tucker down and adding utility man Mauricio Dubon, who is hitting over .500 this postseason to the lineup.
The bottom four of the order for Houston, which included both Tucker and Dubon combined to go 6-for-14 for a .429 average with four RBI and four runs scored.
The wily veteran manager used both his best relievers to close out the game and announced he would start Jose Uriquidy on the mound for Game Four of the series Thursday at 7 P.M. Central.
Uncle Mike Used All The Gas Left In The Tank
Although “Uncle Mike” was 0-for-5 at the plate Wednesday, his running catch in the bottom of the sixth inning saved the game for Houston. With two outs and a runner on second in a 5-2 game, 36-year-old Brantley chased down a line drive in the left centerfield gap to prevent extra bases and keep momentum in the Astros dugout.
“I did not think I had it,” Brantley said in his postgame interview.
“I could have taken a better angle, but it feels good to make that play for the team and get the win. We need to keep playing well, it is a good first step but we need to come out tomorrow and do it again.”
SOS For Marcus Semien:
It is now or never for Marcus Semien to get going at the plate and help get the Texas Rangers to their first World Series since 2011.
Semien is hitting just .171 in the postseason after going 0-for-3 with a walk and run scored on Wednesday.
He is popping up at a high rate and despite his multi-hit effort in Game Two, he has not been the same guy who is likely to win the American League Silver Slugger Award for second baseman.
If these struggles continue into Thursday night and the Rangers do not receive a big game from the best leadoff hitter in franchise history, this series will be the center of the baseball world going into the weekend if it is tied at 2-2.
Marcus Semien Gets The Bat Going, Michael Brantley Enters The Chat | Texas Rangers Go Up 2-0 On Dusty Baker’s Boyz In ALCS
Marcus Semien and his Texas Rangers got vengeance on Framber Valdez for early season beef with a four-run first inning that lifted them to a 2-0 lead in the ALCS.
Now they are just two wins away from a World Series berth and ending Dusty Baker’s shot at a repeat.
Semien sets the tone:
After going 0-for-4 in Game 1, including leaving five men on base, Marcus Semien was locked in from the first pitch of Monday afternoon’s contest in Houston as he shot a line drive single to Michael Brantley.
As if playoff motivation was not enough, Semien had been waiting since July 27th to get his lick back on opposing starting pitcher Framber Valdez. In that game, after the Rangers got to him, Valdez hit Semien with a fastball that appeared to be in retaliation for Yordan Alverez being plunked the inning before.
“It is always going to be in the back of my mind,” Semien told reporters after the game when asked if he took extra pride in beating Valdez.
“You are always going to remember that, but we still have a series to play. We did what we needed to do to beat Framber but the rest of the pitching staff did well against us so we will look to make adjustments.”
That single kicked off what would be a four-run first inning that featured Semien scoring the first run on an errant throw by Valdez. After the team batted around, Semien would leadoff the second inning with a single and make himself the first player to hit the first pitch of the first two innings of a playoff game in Major League history.
He would finish the game 2-for-5 with two strikeouts and a line out.
Brantley was a bright spot in playoff return:
After missing the entire 2022 postseason run “Professional Hitter” Michael Brantley was inserted in the lineup by Baker to get some production out of the DH spot and he certainly delivered. Brantley went 2-for-3 with an RBI double in the 6th to make the score 5-3.
During batting practice, Brantley was seen getting tips from his father, former Major League player and hitting coach Mickey Brantley who has been Michael’s hitting coach since he came out of the womb.
Tough task for Dusty:
Baker and his Astros leave Houston with a sour taste in their mouths after dropping both of their first two home games and forfeiting home field advantage over. Teams down 0-2 lose the series 84% of the time so Houston will have their work cut out for them if they want to bring the series back to their home ballpark.
Keys for the Astros to climb out of this hole include Baker getting his star players going, Kyle Tucker, Jose Abreau, Jose Altuve and Jeremy Pena went a combined 0-for-16 in Game Two.
Also, those bullpen weapons at their disposal must be sharp for him in Arlington to give them a fighting chance.
Game Three will be played Wednesday night at 7PM. Central.
Texas Rangers Find Creative Ways To Win Games | Marcus Semien’s Heads Up Play In The 8th Inning Of ALCS Game 1 Is Key Example
Marcus Semien and the Texas Rangers came out victorious in a Game One pitcher’s duel 2-0 over Dusty Baker and the Houston Astros in the “Battle for Texas.”
Despite his struggles at the plate, which saw him leave five runners on base; Semien impacted the game with a pair of defensive gems and a heads up 7-6-4 8th inning double play.
Marcus Semien Still Struggling With Bat
The playoff woes at the plate followed Marcus Semien down to Houston for Game 1 of the ALCS.
His batting average for the playoffs sits at .148 after going 0-for-4 and leaving five runners on base Sunday night. That included not being able to drive in any runs with the bases loaded and two outs in the second inning off of Justin Verlander and leaving a pair of guys on in the seventh against Hector Neris.
Semien, who is going to be the likely winner of the American League Gold Glove award for second baseman made his impact on defense as his heads up play in the 8th killed the Astros final rally.
With Jose Altuve on first base, Alex Bregman hit a ball to the deepest part of MinuteMaid Park’s left field.
Rangers outfielder Evan Carter made a leaping catch at the wall and as Altuve passed second and tried to get back to first base, Semien noticed that his foot did not retouch the second base bag.
“That’s a play where I always watch to see what the runner does,” Semien told reporters after the game.
“Sometimes the umpires are looking at the ball and that is exactly what the second base ump told me. He said he was looking at the ball. He did not see it. I tried to remind him and he still called it safe, but luckily that is a play we can review.”
Texas Rangers Top Four Hitters Scuffling In Game 1
Dusty Baker and the Astros had a great game plan for Semien and the other top four hitters in the Rangers lineup as they combined to go 1-for-16 with the lone hit being a first inning single by Corey Seager. With Nathan Eovaldi scheduled to pitch for the Rangers, lefty professional hitter Michael Brantley should find himself in the lineup next game.
Special Week For Semien & Wife Tarah
The Texas Rangers’ ALCS sweep gave Semien a chance to be there for the birth of his fourth child with his wife Tarah Murrey. Baby Amelie Carol Anne Semien was born around midday Thursday after the couple decided to induce labor.
“It’s the first time we’ve had a child during a playoff run,” Semien said. “I was happy we won our series so I could be there. This whole last couple of weeks of the season I was just fearing I wouldn’t be able to be there because these games all mean so much.”
Round two between these two heavyweights will begin Monday afternoon at 3:30 Central Time.
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