World Series 2021: Braves' bullpen comes through after Charlie Morton's injury
By Pedro Moura
FOX Sports MLB Writer
HOUSTON — The last time A.J. Minter threw three innings in a postseason game, he had a little warning.
Because the schedule called for the series to be played without off days, the Braves planned a bullpen game for Game 5 of the 2020 NLCS; Minter started it. He was so good and so efficient that manager Brian Snitker left him in to finish off three.
In Game 1 of the 2021 World Series, Snitker summoned Minter because the Braves’ starter, Charlie Morton, suffered a broken leg on a Yuli Gurriel comebacker. Minter rushed into the game, then threw 2 2/3 effective and efficient innings, enough to render Morton’s injury an inconvenience, not a game-changing blow.
The Braves needed 20 outs from their relievers Tuesday at Minute Maid Park, and they obtained them with aplomb. Minter handled the first eight, Luke Jackson five, Tyler Matzek four and Will Smith three. Atlanta lost its first-choice starter to a fractured fibula and claimed a 6-2 victory in Game 1 anyway. Morton’s absence will likely loom large in the Game 5 he was slated to start, but on this night, the Braves weathered it thanks to their bullpen.
"We’re feeling confident right now in that bullpen," Minter said.
Morton is the Braves’ spiritual leader, the wise veteran with time for everyone. Players who saw him said he was "devastated" to sustain the injury, but some of them might have rivaled his anger.
"I hate it for him," Snitker said. "I really hate it for him."
After the second inning, Braves catcher Travis d’Arnaud noticed Morton struggling to walk. The pitcher told him the ball got him "good," but d’Arnaud did not suspect a fracture.
"To go out there and strike out the next guy with a broken leg blows my mind," d’Arnaud said.
The Braves indicated Morton went for an X-ray after the second inning, and it came back negative. Only after he struck out José Altuve to begin the third inning did the pain become too much.
Atlanta’s pitching staff did a remarkable job containing Altuve and Alex Bregman, the Astros' stalwarts. The two men struck out five times between them for only the second time in the hundreds of games they have played together. The other time was Aug. 1, 2016, at the conclusion of Bregman’s rocky first week in the majors.
The Braves have a glaring shortage of right-handed relievers, so their top left-handers will have to retire Houston's All-Star right-handed hitters for the team to win it all. Tuesday, then, was an auspicious opener.
On offense, too, the Braves continued their roll from the previous round. Astros starter Framber Valdez, an ALCS hero, never found his form, and the Braves capitalized on his early mistakes. He missed low and outside with his first two pitches, sinkers to Jorge Soler. With his third pitch, he missed high and over the plate.
Soler sent it to the Crawford Boxes, becoming the first hitter to begin a World Series with a homer. Valdez surrendered another run when Austin Riley laced a double to center, scoring Ozzie Albies, who had reached on an infield single.
In the second, the Braves tacked on another run off of two singles, a sacrifice fly and a groundout. In the third, while Morton was undergoing tests, Adam Duvall launched a two-run homer, ending Valdez’s evening.
Meanwhile, Morton was able to traverse a trip through the talented Houston lineup peppered with his former teammates. The Astros loaded the bases in the first, but Morton induced an inning-ending grounder from Kyle Tucker, adeptly fielded by Albies, who ranged to field and quickly released an on-target throw.
"That was an example of defense saving the day for them early," Astros manager Dusty Baker said afterward.
The true day-savers, according to the Braves, were their relievers, the ragtag bunch. Minter was a minor leaguer as recently as two months ago. Matzek was an independent baller two years ago. Jackson had a 6.84 ERA last year.
But the trio combined to keep the Braves ahead in Game 1 and in this series. The entire group, probably augmented by right-hander Jacob Webb as an injury replacement, will need to keep it up to overcome Morton’s absence.
They have a clear camaraderie. And according to their catcher, there's something else.
"I don’t know if I’m supposed to say this," d’Arnaud sheepishly said, "but they’ve all got big nuts, too."
Pedro Moura is the national baseball writer for FOX Sports. He most recently covered the Dodgers for three seasons for The Athletic. Previously, he spent five years covering the Angels and Dodgers for the Orange County Register and L.A. Times. More previously, he covered his alma mater, USC, for ESPNLosAngeles.com. The son of Brazilian immigrants, he grew up in the Southern California suburbs. Follow him on Twitter @pedromoura.