Justin Verlander K's 11 to lead Astros to win in ALCS opener

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The Astros ran out of things to say about their 4-2 victory over the New York Yankees in the first game of the American League Championship Series.

The Astros locker room was filled with cries of "first-ballot Hall of Famer" and "ace" after Verlander struck out 11 batters and allowed only one earned run.

After giving up six runs on 10 hits in the first game of the division series against the SeattleMariners, Verlander was not as sharp as he had been in the previous games.

A three-run, walk-off home run by Yordan Alvarez gave the Astros a three-run, walk-off victory against the SeattleMariners. It was no surprise to Martin that his ace came back to his best when he was needed the most.

"This is what I was expecting from him," Maldonado said. That is the reason he is a Hall of Fame member.

"He's mentally strong, which you can see, but he's physically strong as well," Baker said. He has mental strength. He can dial it up when he's down and out.

After Harrison Bader hit a solo shot in the second, Verlander came back and retired the last 11 Yankees he faced in a row.

It was the eighth double-digit strikeout game of Verlander's career, setting an MLB record.

"I believe you saw what a real Hall of Fame pitcher's made of tonight," Lance McCullers said. It wasn't a good start, but you don't have to beat around the bush. He wanted to do better. He worked all week. He made the changes he felt like he had to. In a series where there's only one off-day, he being able to give us six amazinginnings speaks volumes for who he is as a pitcher.

The Yankees had 17 strikeouts in the game, tying for the second most in a nine-inning game. The Astros' differential of 15 strikeouts was the largest in a single game in the playoffs.

"He gave us exactly the kind of performance we needed, and I feel that all the time about Verlander," said Jose Altuve, who is stuck in the longest postseason slump of his career. This was a huge win for us and we have been great all year. In a tough series like this one, and against a great team like the Yankees, he set the tone and allowed us to win the opener.

In nine career starts against the Yankees, Verlander has a 2.52 earned run average. This was Verlander's 15th career win in the playoffs and he is second all-time.

The Astros have a 10-5 all-time record against New York in the playoffs.