Will Lourdes Gurriel Jr. be Nathan Eovaldi's executioner again?
Lourdes Gurriel Jr.'s long-awaited night with the Arizona D-Backs is about to begin.
This will be the first appearance in a World Series for “Yunito”, who will join his brother Yuli Gurriel as the second set of Cuban brothers to play in a Fall Classic in the Major Leagues, following the legacy of the “Hernández”, Liván, and Orlando “El Duke”.
“We are used to facing big crowds and this is also part of the challenge,” Lourdes said when asked if the atmosphere in Philadelphia had put pressure on the young D-Backs, which could also be an answer heading into this World Series. unpublished “We look forward to the support of our fans just as they will have to deal with our fans. “It's a question of loyalty.”
In other words, Lourdes gave credit to the great teamwork and the team's security, although Arizona has not emerged as a favorite in these playoffs. Every prediction was pulverized: they won the Wild Card undefeated against the Milwaukee Brewers. They took down the Dodgers with a 3-0 sweep. And then, after opening 0-2 down, they sensationally came back in the series against the powerful Phillies. Thus, they have returned to the World Series again after 22 years.
Yes, that's the point: the pressure is everywhere, and the D-Backs have shown so far that playoff inexperience is not always an advantage for the opponent.
Lourdes will begin Game 1 against the Rangers tonight with a five-game hitting streak, where he is hitting .368 (7-for-19), with two doubles, a home run, two RBIs, and a walk-in that span, He also has two multi-hit games. Her performance was key for the D-Backs to beat the “favorites” Philadelphia Phillies in seven games.
Yunito recorded his third multi-hit game of this postseason in Game 7 against the Phillies, the fourth of his career. His defense was elite in the leftfield, but his offensive contribution has been the brightest point for the 30-year-old outfielder, a native of Santi Spíritus: he has had 12 hits this postseason, tied for the third most on the team, behind Ketel Marte (18) and Corbin Carroll (13).
How prevalent has Lourdes' swing damage been this postseason?
He was unstoppable in his last five NLCS games (7 H, BB), hitting his fifth extra-base hit of this postseason in Game 6. He also produced his first home run of the National League Championship Series during Game 6 in Philadelphia (with no runners on board), combined with Tommy Pham to hit back-to-back home runs in the second inning — the back-to-back marks the third time this postseason, and the fifth such feat in franchise history.
The story to follow tonight, however, is that Lourdes has hit at ease against the Rangers' Game 1 starter, right-hander Nathan Eovaldi.
Lourdes Gurriel Jr. vs. Nathan Eovaldi
-Regular Season: 20 PA, .389/.450/.722, 2 HR, 4 K
-Playoffs: 0 PA
A good part of the expectation will be there, especially because Eovaldi knows that he has not easily escaped Lourdes' swing. Still, of course, there are pros and cons to the challenge: Yunito is smashing sliders in these playoffs, going 3-for-4 with a double and a home run. Instead, the fastballs have surpassed his swing. Lourdes has missed 18 of her 23 at-bats that have ended with a fastball this postseason, including five of her 10 strikeouts. Pitchers have attacked him with fastballs that ranged between 95-96 mph. Of course, there is a sign of hope, and that is that, when Lourdes hits high-velocity pitches, he usually crushes them: his average exit velocity is 93 mph.
Something we can also assure is that in the D-Backs lineup tonight, there is no other hitter with more matchups (20 matchups) and a line of success like Gurriel Jr. against Eovaldi, including two home runs — the veteran 38-year-old Evan Longoria, who will return to the World Series after 15 seasons, has missed 12 of 15 times at bat against Eovaldi in his career. Now, of course, the big question is whether Lourdes can once again be the executioner against Eovaldi, who has stood out as one of the Rangers' main aces in these playoffs.