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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 24, 2017)
SPORTS TUESDAY, OCTOBER 24, 2017 1B FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @EOSPORTS Astros’ patience pays off WORLD SERIES Saturday Prep Roundup Helix, Echo earn spots in Class 1A volleyball tournament Grizzlies, Cougars upset No. 1 seed Powder Valley to earn postseason berths East Oregonian AP Photo/Eric Christian Smith Houston Astros’ Jose Altuve holds up the championship trophy after Game 7 of baseball’s American League Championship Series against the New York Yankees Saturday, Oct. 21, in Houston. Houston goes from woeful to World Series trip in just 4 years By KRISTIE RIEKEN Associated Press HOUSTON — Just four years ago, the Houston Astros weren’t just bad, they were embarrassing — so embarrassing that many dubbed them the “Lastros.” Now Houston is heading to its second World Series in franchise history after beating the Yankees in the AL Champi- onship Series, and its time as the league’s laughingstock seems like a distant memory. “You always picture yourself World Series - Game 1 Houston Los Angeles Astros Dodgers • Tuesday, 5:08 p.m. (TV: FOX) • at Dodger Stadium in the World Series, but to be here after my debut in 2012 with the team that we had, with the players that we had, I never thought we would be here,” left- hander Dallas Keuchel said. Keuchel is one of just four Astros who remain from a 2013 team that hit rock bottom by losing a franchise-record 111 games in its fi rst year in the AL. Houston became the fi rst team since Kansas City from 2004-06 to lose 100 games in three straight seasons. Those bumbling Astros, who had the league’s lowest payroll as the franchise shed its veterans to rebuild, often played in front of fewer than 10,000 fans and routinely faced boos from the few people who did show up. All-Star second baseman Jose Altuve, super-utility man Marwin Gonzalez and right- hander Brad Peacock are the other holdovers from the lean times. “When I got here, no one talked about winning,” said manager A.J. Hinch, who took over in 2015. “And that was one of the fi rst things that Altuve told me in my offi ce, that he wanted to win. And that represented what the next step was for this organization. And obviously See ASTROS/2B Kershaw fi nally adds World Series to resume Dodgers ace relishing his fi rst appearance By BEN WALKER Associated Press LOS ANGELES — In the Twilight Zone of October, the clock turns back at Dodger Stadium. To the mound, to the moments that defi ned World Series cham- pions. Orel Hershiser, steely and standing tall.Fernando Valenzuela, eyes to the sky.The great Sandy Koufax, the very picture of pitching. And that brings us to Game 1 on Tuesday night, when the Los Angeles Dodgers host the Houston Astros. Up on the bump, on baseball’s biggest stage, we fi nally get to see Clayton Kershaw. About time, right? Kershaw has done most everything an ace can accom- plish — three Cy Young Awards, fi ve ERA crowns, three strikeout titles, a seven-time All-Star who’s also won an MVP trophy AP Photo/Matt Slocum Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw (22) throws during the fi rst inning of Game 5 of baseball’s Nation- al League Championship Series against the Chicago Cubs on Oct. 19 in Chicago. and thrown a no-hitter. Now, against a backdrop of the San Gabriel Mountains majestic at sunset, the lefty and his Dodgers make their pitch for the ultimate prize. “I think that’s the fi nal piece for him,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. Said Kershaw: “Who knows how many times I’m going to get to go to the World Series? I know more than anybody how hard it is to get there. So, I’m defi nitely not taking this one for granted.” To those Kershaw plays with, he’s got nothing left to prove. A model of consistency, the Dodgers see him as money every time he takes the mound. It seems almost like an insult to many, in fact, to suggest anything otherwise. Yet there is that one nagging set of stats that can’t be over- looked: 6-7 with an unsightly 4.40 ERA in the playoffs. Now, it’s no shame to struggle in the postseason. All-Stars Chris Sale, Corey Kluber and Max Scherzer all got banged around this month. Hall of Famers Greg Maddux, Randy Johnson and Tom Glavine, for all of their many accolades, each had losing records in the postseason. Those guys also helped pitch their teams to championships. “You remember watching. You remember who went to the World Series,” Kershaw said. Kershaw has excelled at See DODGERS/2B In the Old Oregon League volleyball district tournament, Joseph may have emerged as the district champions, however Echo and Helix both locked up postseason spots as well with upset victories. On Saturday at La Grande High School, the Cougars and Grizzles both beat the No. 1 seed Powder Valley Badgers to clinch the fi nal two playoff spots in the district. Echo, coming in as the No. 3 seed, swept Powder Valley 25-21-25-19, 25-20 in the opening round before losing to Joseph 3-1 in the district championship game. Helix fell to Joseph 3-1 (25-11, 18-25, 10-25, 22-25) but then turned around and beat Powder Valley 3-1 (25-20, 25-15, 23-25, 25-20) to fi nish in third place. The Badgers had swept the season series with both the Cougars and Grizzlies by a combined 12-4 score. On the day, Sadie Wilson collected 34 kills for Helix while Kylee Stahancyk, Lynne Roberts, Kailey Mize, and Arianna Krol all had standout performances. Statis- tics for Echo were not available. Helix’s Wilson and Charmayne Bennett and Echo’s Monique Montoya were also selected to the all-tournament team after- wards. UP NEXT: Echo will host Jordan Valley on Wednesday in a fi rst round meeting, while Helix will travel to Dufur. ———— All-Tournament Team Sadie Wilson, Helix; Megan Bingham, Powder Valley; Monique Montoya, Echo; Charmayne Bennett, Helix; Emma Hite, Joseph; Sabrina Albee, Joseph. CBC DISTRICTS PILOT ROCK — The Culver Bull- dogs continued their dominance and swept Heppner on Saturday to claim in Class 2A Columbia Basin Conference district title. To set up the meeting with Culver, Heppner had to go through tournament-host Pilot Rock as the Rockets defeated the defending state champion Weston- McEwen TigerScots one round earlier. In the Mustangs match against Pilot Rock, they held on to sweep the Rockets 25-21, 28-26, 25-22. Heppner had help from a big defensive performance by freshman Sydney Wilson, who fi nished with 26 digs. “We had to battle for each and every point,” head coach Mindy Wilson said. “We didn’t serve well, missing 15 serves, and that does not help when trying to gain momentum. But by supporting each other. We dug deep and got the win.” For Pilot Rock, Abby Rigby had 14 kills and Rhyanne Oates tallied 18 digs to lead the team. The momentum the Mustangs even- tually gained was not enough to top the Bulldogs. Culver kept Heppner at bay for the fi rst two sets, winning each 25-15 and 25-16. Heppner made things a little tougher in the third set, but the Bulldogs pulled away to win 25-21. “We came out after our win against Pilot Rock and just couldn’t get going,” Wilson said. “You have to be on your game against a team like Culver. They were just the better team tonight.” This isn’t the end for the Mustangs, as both Heppner and Culver will advance to the 2A state tournament. However, two teams seasons did end See PREP ROUNDUP/2B Sports shorts Curry fi ned $50K for throwing mouthpiece at game offi cial NEW YORK (AP) — Stephen Curry has been fi ned $50,000 for throwing his mouthpiece in the direction of an offi cial during the fi nal minute of Golden State’s loss at Memphis on Saturday night. Teammate Andre Iguodala received a $15,000 fi ne for his response and “verbally abusing a game offi cial” late in the 111-101 loss that sent the defending NBA champions to a 1-2 start. The NBA announced the Curry penalties Monday, when the Warriors were set to play at Dallas to conclude their three-game road trip. Curry became angry because he thought he was fouled on a lay-in with 43.1 seconds left. Kevin Durant also was ejected following the play.Late Saturday, Curry tweeted: “No excuse for that! Gotta remember who I am playing for...” Wentz throws for 4 TDs as Philadelphia tops Washington “Love it. I’d rather be playing in the heat than in the snow, so it’s great.“ — Justin Turner Los Angeles Dodgers third base- man and Southern California native on the expected 100-de- gree temperature in Los Angeles for the start of the World Series on Tuesday. PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Carson Wentz tossed four touchdown passes, and the Phila- delphia Eagles overcame losing nine-time Pro Bowl left tackle Jason Peters in a 34-24 win over the Washington Redskins on Monday night. Wentz threw for 268 yards and ran for a career-best 63 after a shaky start to lead the NFL-best Eagles (6-1) to their fi fth straight win. But the victory was costly because Peters was carted off the fi eld with a knee injury in the third quarter. Kirk Cousins had 303 yards passing and three TDs for the Redskins (3-3). Philadelphia swept Washington for the fi rst time since 2013 and has a commanding lead in the NFC East. The Cowboys and Redskins are tied for second place. THIS DATE IN SPORTS 1992 — The Toronto Blue Jays take baseball’s champi- onship outside the U.S. for the fi rst time, beating the Atlanta Braves 4-3 in 11 innings in Game 6 of the World Series. 1994 — Atlanta’s Greg Maddux becomes the fi rst pitcher to win three straight Cy Young Awards, unan- imously sweeping the NL honor. 2004 — Arizona’s Emmitt Smith breaks Walter Payton’s NFL record for 100-yard rushing games with his 78th. Neil Rackers of the Cardinals ties an NFL record by kicking three fi eld goals of at least 50 yards. Contact us at 541-966-0838 or sports@eastoregonian.com
