PHOENIX - If Trevor Bauer’s intent was to demean, question the integrity of or simply shame the Houston Astros' pitching staff, it has backfired.
Now, the starting unit dominating baseball is determined to become one of the most ruthless quintets that ever walked on a field.
“I’m not going to say we have one of the greatest pitching staffs of all time,’’ 24-year-old starter Lance McCullers tells USA TODAY Sports, “but I will go on record to say that with the pitches we possess, we may have the nastiest stuff by a five-man group ever assembled.’’
These aren’t words spiked with arrogance or bravado, but designed to let everyone know that the Astros’ rotation is top-to-bottom genius, and woe unto those believing anything sinister is transpiring on the mound.
“You got some guy out there popping off, trying to (bleeping) discredit people,’’ McCullers says, “of course it’s going to make us angry. It gets guys frustrated.
“You know what that really does? It just makes us hungrier.’’
Uh-oh.
This is a starting staff whose ERA is just 2.39, nearly a full run better than the Washington Nationals and St. Louis Cardinals at 3.19, with the New York Yankees (3.33) the closest in the American League. It’s a rotation that leads the major leagues in virtually every imaginable category, from their ERA to their 277 strikeouts to their .189 opponent’s batting average to their 0.95 WHIP to their .574 OPS, to any other formula you want to use.
“It’s just incredible how talented this rotation is,’’ says Astros manager A.J. Hinch, rattling off the names of two Cy Young winners, an MVP, a World Series hero, one of the best young strikeout pitchers in history, and a man who’s pitching better than anyone in baseball. “When you wake up in the morning, and you’re writing those names on the lineup card, you realize how special this is.
“It’s certainly the best collection I’ve ever been around.’’
Still, after 34-year-old veteran Charlie Morton continued his marvelous season yielding just two hits and struck out 10 against the Yankees a week ago, Bauer, the Cleveland Indians' right-hander, lashed out via the keyboard:
Bauer, in further comments, insinuated that the Astros were cheating, using pine tar to doctor the baseballs. It left the Astros seething, believing he was trying to attack their character, perhaps out of a personal vendetta against his former UCLA teammate Gerrit Cole.
“I don’t know what that was about,’’ Cole said. “No idea. No idea. I know everybody has their own opinions. But I just block the noise out when the volume gets turned up.
“For whatever reason, we’ve drawn a lot of attention lately, and it’s like the shots are coming all over the place. So we just huddled up and decided let’s just do what we do, stay together, and don’t worry about it.’’
The Astros sent Justin Verlander to the mound that evening, and he promptly became only the fourth pitcher in history to strike out at least 14 Yankees without issuing a walk.
Two days later, Cole, who opened the season as the Astros’ No. 4 starter, one-upped Verlander: 16 strikeouts (including nine consecutive), just one hit and Cole, just for emphasis, fired a 99-mph fastball to complete his first career shutout.
Cole, 3-1 with a 1.42 ERA, has now struck out 77 batters, which not only leads the major leagues, but is the most by any pitcher in the first seven starts with a new team in baseball history. He’s only the sixth player in history to strike out at least 16 and allow one or fewer hits in a shutout.
“I’ve seen no-hitters and things like that,’’ Hinch says, “but that was the most impressive pitching performance I’ve ever seen.’’
There’s no one pitching better in baseball unless you consider, well, his own teammates: Verlander (4-1, 1.17 ERA), Morton (4-0, 2.16 ERA), McCullers (4-1, 3.73 ERA) with former Cy Young winner Dallas Keuchel (1-5, 3.98 ERA) just getting untracked.
Certainly, no pitching rotation is closer. If they’re not eating or going to a whiskey bar together, they’re waiting on one another to take the bus to board flights. If they’re not playing cards with one another, they’re huddled together during games, comparing notes, offering advice to whoever’s on the mound. And if they’re not heaping praise on one another, they’re teasing each other.
“I can’t believe they gave you an MVP that year for just pitching in 30 games,’’ Cole yelled at Verlander last weekend before picking horses for the Kentucky Derby.
“I pitched in 34 games,’’ Verlander calmly corrected him.
Cole: “OK, wow, 34 games.’’
Verlander: “I won 24 of them.’’
The two have become inseparable since Cole’s arrival to Houston. Cole, battling nagging injuries the last two years in Pittsburgh, going just 19-22 with a 4.12 ERA, sought out Verlander for help. It wasn’t enough to be a front-line starter. He wanted to be great, and to one day have Verlander’s pedigree.
And even a simple game of catch proved vital when Verlander taught him how to create the right movement on his four-seam fastball, which he now throws more than ever before, commanding the strike zone with all of his pitches.
“It wasn’t like I was trying to be a mentor type,’’ Verlander said, “we just sort of started talking. He hadn’t really heard a bunch of stuff that we were talking about, and hadn’t really thought about it.
“It was just learning how to sequence his pitches, and use his pitches more effectively He was doing stuff ass-backwards. He was doing it all wrong. When people say now, “How did this happen to him?’ Well, watch him pitch. Watch how he sequences his pitches now versus to what he did before.
“He’s a completely different pitcher. He’s having the best stretch of his career, and it’s a testament to how hard he’s worked.’’
Could this have possibly happened if Cole had remained in Pittsburgh?
“I would be in the same spot physically,’’ Cole said, “but the information I’ve gotten from Justin, my peers, and from the club, that’s been pretty invaluable. I really leaned on some of those suggestions, especially from Justin.
“So, I don’t think this would have happened in Pittsburgh just because Justin wasn’t on my team.’’
The World Series parade in downtown Houston last November wouldn’t have happened either without Verlander, who has been nothing short of sensational since his Aug. 31, 2017 arrival. Including the postseason, when he was the ALCS MVP, Verlander is 13-2 with a 1.45 ERA, striking out 151 with 24 walks in 124 1/3 innings, yielding a .157 batting average.
Morton, meanwhile, persevered through 10 DL stints in his career before finding stardom with the Astros. His unassuming demeanor made Bauer's comments sting further, believing they were directed toward one of the most likeable players in the game.
“To me, he’s the biggest inspiration on our team,’’ McCullers says. “He’s never been able to stay healthy for an extended period of time, and he finally has gotten an opportunity, and everything has come full circle for him.
“So it bothers you when you’ve got some guy trying to discredit Charlie Morton, who has been nothing but the biggest pro his whole career, and has been nothing but a mentor, a great teammate, a great father and husband, and has worked his ass off to get to this point, and to have some guy popping off.’’
Morton said he never once has used pine tar or any other substance on a baseball. He’ll only plead guilty to his constant use of bubble gum, just to keep his mouth moist, and occasionally may have sugar on his fingers.
“I will say I’m throwing the ball better than ever, and my velocity is up,’’ Morton says, “but to what degree the sugar is affecting the rotation of the ball, I have no idea.
“When people start making this a big deal, and start talking about individuals, especially when they don’t have proof, that’s when I get uncomfortable about that narrative. It’s either an open secret that a majority of the league is (using pine tar), or it’s not, and you’re vilifying individuals.
“I don’t know Trevor, so I can’t tell you what his motivation is. But there was also an element of him questioning the integrity of individuals using pine tar, and the word being morality.
“I care more about who I am, and the mark I leave on the game, than anything I could possibly do on the field. I’ve never done an illicit drug in my life. And I heard people mention that about me, saying, “Well, he’s throwing awfully hard.' I agree with you, I am throwing hard. That’s a fact. Sorry.’’
This quintet's lone worry is the future. Come November, Keuchel, the longtime ace of the staff and one of only three pitchers in Astros’ history to win the Cy Young award, is eligible for free agency. So is Morton. Verlander and Cole are eligible after the 2019 season.
“It’s kind of the elephant in the room,’’ Morton says. “It would be awesome if we could all play together forever, but that’s not the reality of the business. It’s not the reality of life.’’
It’s a conversation rarely discussed among each other, at least now. When the time comes, Verlander says, there will be lobbying. This is the only organization Keuchel has ever known, and if he returns, he’d sure love to have all of his buddies right alongside him.
“It’s sad to think about,’’ McCullers says. “It would be so weird not to have Dallas around, just with that personality, the constant force of this organization.
“That’s why we’re not taking anything for granted right now. We want to soak up every moment we’re together, and while we’re together, do something special that’ll never be forgotten.’’
They’re certainly on the way, with a little inspiration coming their way from a certain pitcher in Cleveland.
The Astros will soon be seeing plenty of Cleveland, seven times in a 10-day stretch beginning May 18 at Minute Maid Park in Houston. Perhaps every Astros starter will get a chance to face them, maybe even opposing Bauer.
“That might be the time,’’ McCullers said, “when we really have something to say.’’
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