Texas Rangers manager Bruce Bochy has named Nathan Eovaldi as the starting pitcher for Game 1 of the World Series on Friday.
Eovaldi will face off against Arizona Diamondbacks right-hander Zac Gallen. The Arizona ace is 2-2 in the postseason with a 5.24 ERA in 22.1 innings. He's recorded 13 strikeouts and has a 1.48 WHIP.
Eovaldi, meanwhile, is undefeated and has earned wins in each of his four starts this postseason. The 33-year-old right-hander from Alvin, Texas, has a 2.42 ERA in 26 innings with seven earned runs. He's struck out 28 and had only four walks and two HRs allowed. Eovaldi has a WHIP of 0.96.
The Rangers are undefeated (4-0) this postseason when Eovaldi makes a start. His four wins are the most ever by a Texas pitcher in one postseason and tie the career mark for playoff wins in club history set by Colby Lewis.
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Eovaldi is the 27th pitcher in MLB history to post 4+ wins in a single postseason (the last 4 by Kershaw/Julio Urías in 2020) and only three pitchers have ever reached five wins in a single postseason: Washington's Stephen Strasburg in 2019, the Angels' Francisco Rodríguez in 2002 and Randy Johnson in 2001 for Arizona.
Eovaldi opened this postseason with four straight quality starts (6.0+ IP, three-or-fewer earned runs), joining Cliff Lee in 2010 (also four QS) as the only pitchers in club history with four QS in a single postseason. Eovaldi is just the 7th pitcher in MLB history to earn a win and post a QS in each of his first four outings of a postseason -- the last was St. Louis's Michael Wacha in 2013).
His 28 strikeouts this postseason rank second to only Philadelphia’s Zack Wheeler (35) and are the second-most ever by a Ranger in one postseason (47-Lee in 2010). Eovaldi (28 SO/4 BB) and Wheeler (34 SO/2 BB) are also just the sixth and seventh pitchers in MLB history (7th and 8th instances) to post 28+ SO and four-or-fewer BB over their first four outings of a postseason, last done by LAD’s Clayton Kershaw in 2020 (31 SO/3 BB).
Eovaldi's win 9-2 victory in ALCS Game 6 at Houston extended the series to a Game 7 and he joined Cliff Lee as the only two Texas pitchers to ever win an elimination game in the postseason. Jordan Montgomery would be added to that list after getting the win in ALCS Game 7.
Eovaldi recorded a postseason career-high nine strikeouts in the ALCS Game 2 win at Houston. His previous best was eight, which he hit three times.
