See you later

Before Game 6 between the Rangers and Astros began this Sunday, I saw the result of a metric that caught my attention. It was the Clutch, a sabermetric statistic available on FanGraphs to measure how well a player performed in high-leverage situations.

In any context, 0.0+ Clutch is above average at the league level. As of 1.0, it's good. And 2.0+, it's super good, one-star percentage in clutch situations. Do you know who was the leader of the ranking? Yordan Alvarez? No! It may seem incredible, but that answer is incorrect. Although these days I don't think anyone would coherently argue that Yordan is the most feared hitter in baseball, the Clutch metrics reveal another leader: his compatriot, Rangers right fielder Adolis García.

Surprised? At first glance, it happened to me too. And it's reasonable: Adolis has produced in more clutch situations. Yordan is being the David Ortíz of these days, but he has been practically alone. Six of his at-bats have come with clean bases. Yordan was only shut out in Game 1 when he went 0-for-4 and was struck out three times by left-hander Jordan Montgomery — the only ball he put into play was a 63 mph grounder against compatriot Aroldis Chapman late in the eighth inning.

The next day, in Game 2, Yordan made his swing explode with a pair of home runs challenging the Rangers practically alone. For his part, Adolis' momentum has largely to do with the collective opportunity generated by the contribution of Texas hitters in these playoffs. Remember, the Rangers started the postseason with a 7-0 record. During that streak, the lineup generated a +20 run differential. They led the scoreboards in 56 of 63 combined innings against Rays and Orioles pitchers.

That consistency led to multiple at-bats that ended up providing scoring leads for the Rangers. Then, those hitters who had success with runners on base added more points to the Clutch. Then, after the Astros broke the Rangers' 7-0 streak in Game 3 of the ALCS, the lead changes alternated. There were rallies early in the games. Then, sensational ties and comebacks like in Game 5.

In the end, the result of all the key turns generated that 0.68 Clutch for Adolis, who has surpassed Yordan's impact for the moment. Of course, it is clear to me that there has not been a swing more feared than that of Yordan Álvarez during these playoffs. But, as I wrote before, the hitters around him aren't getting the job done. During 27 of his 44 plate appearances so far this postseason, Yordan has entered the batter's box without runners on base. In only eight of those 27 has he enjoyed the prospect of seeing runners in scoring position.

To further the Astros' misfortune, Yordan has hit four of his six home runs with clean bases. The two he recorded in this Championship Series against the Rangers have come without runners in circulation. The home runs that center fielder Leody stole from Yordan Álvarez at the start of the sixth during Game 3 would also have been with the bases empty.

Instead, the story around Adolis is quite the opposite: his Rangers teammates have been on base in 23 of his 49 plate appearances this postseason. That frequency has been key: in 16 of those 23 (70%) visits to the batter's box, the runners have been waiting for a drive from the scoring position. The Astros were dominated against the Rangers' top two starters, Nathan Eovaldi and Jordan Montgomery, although they had a flash during their three-game road sweep at Globe Life Field. However, this Sunday in Game 6 the story changed. Specifically, Yordan Álvarez opened the scoring with a single to left off Nathan Eovaldi in the first inning, but the rest of the lineup finished the game 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position.