Justin Verlander beaten by San Francisco Giants in World Series opener – MLB Update
Justin Verlander had a forgettable time on the mound in Game 1 of the World Series against the San Francisco Giants at AT&T Park in San Francisco Giants. The reigning MVP and Cy Award winner gave up six hits and five runs in just four innings to take his
first loss of the season.
It will not be wrong to say that the Tigers’ ace was unable to handle his nerves under pressure and the Giants took complete advantage of the situation. Verlander displayed some top quality throwing skills in the American League Championship Series against
the New York Yankees.
He took a no hitter into the ninth inning in ALCS Game 1 to set up a memorable series win for the Tigers. Earlier in the American League Division Series, the hard throwing ace shutout the Oakland Athletics to help the Tigers clinch a thrilling 3-2 series
victory.
Manager Jim Leyland looked very disappointed with the outcome of the game. It will be interesting to see if the right hander can regroup and fight back on his next start to win back his fans’ hearts.
"I'm one that's been around long enough to know that a lot of things happen in this game. This was a big-hyped game with Justin, probably a lot of pressure on him," Leyland said.
"But I don't think it had anything to do with the pressure. His fastball command was not good. He got out of sync. He got on fast forward. He just did not pitch well tonight. It's that simple," he said.
"We were hoping for a water shot but he got a lousy single. Kind of killed the whole deal for us," Giants’ reliever Jeremy Affeldt said of Pablo Sandoval’s three home-runs.
Relief pitcher Jose Valverde had another poor outing as he gave up four hits and two runs in just 0.1 innings. His poor effort allowed the Giants to take complete control of the situation. Valverde has now blown three consecutive saves and it will be exciting
to see if he can turn the tables on his next appearance to cement his place on the big league roster.
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