Rays pitcher Tyler Glasnow believed he was tipping his pitches when the Astros jumped on the right-hander for four runs in the first inning of Houston’s ALDS Game 5 triumph.
“I went back and looked, and it was pretty obvious,” Glasnow said after the 6-1 defeat. “As far as the tips go.”
Glasnow has been one of the Rays’ best pitchers this season when healthy, registering a 1.78 ERA and 11.3 strikeouts per nine innings, making the way the Astros registered one hit after the other Thursday even more baffling.
Alex Bregman, who doubled in that first inning, denied the tipping theory.
“No, no, no,” Bregman said. “He’s as tough to face as anybody. I think if you went around and asked everybody on our team, it was just a team approach today. It was just one at-bat after another.
“The ball that Glasnow throws, that cutter, the four-seam cutter that he throws is unbelievable. His breaking ball goes from your head to your toes quick. So I feel like, with him, you just had to pick a pitch and try to put a pretty good swing on it.”
In the Fox Sports studio, Alex Rodriguez and David Ortiz believed Glasnow was indeed tipping his pitches. And one eagle-eyed viewer took a screen grab of Glasnow’s setup when he was throwing a curveball and a fastball.
It may not have decided the game and the series as the Rays were shut down by Astros starter Gerrit Cole, but it may have tipped the advantage to the Astros.
The Astros now go on to the ALCS, where they will face the Yankees starting Saturday night.