Long flight? Correa has a way to get comfortable
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ST. PETERSBURG -- When Astros shortstop Carlos Correa missed the final six games of the regular season with a sore lower back, he blamed the issue on the team’s long flight to Seattle from Houston in advance of the final road trip of the regular season.
Correa returned to play in the American League Division Series, and on Tuesday he said he spent the flight to Tampa prior to Monday's Game 3 lying on the floor. That’s right -- the 6-foot-4 shortstop was sprawled out on the airplane’s floor near the bulkhead to make sure his back stayed stretched out.
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“I felt great when I got here, got my sleep, got my rest,” Correa said. “Felt awesome when I got off the plane. Just happy to be back with the team and on the field once again.”
Correa has looked free and easy on defense and has made a few terrific defensive plays in the first three games of the series against the Rays. That’s a result of having full range of motion in his back.
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“I'm going out there playing knowing that I'm 100 percent healthy,” he said. “So I'm not stopping myself. It's the playoffs. It's the last month of the season. So I'm going out there, giving it my all. If I have to dive, I'm going to dive and make plays. That's what I do. That's what I've been doing my whole career.”
| Game | Date | Result | Highlights |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gm 1 | Oct. 4 | HOU 6, TB 2 | Watch |
| Gm 2 | Oct. 5 | HOU 3, TB 1 | Watch |
| Gm 3 | Oct. 7 | TB 10, HOU 3 | Watch |
| Gm 4 | Oct. 8 | TB 4, HOU 1 | Watch |
| Gm 5 | Oct. 10 | HOU 6, TB 1 | Watch |
Shop for postseason gear: Astros manager AJ Hinch sits in first class and doesn’t see what’s going on with the players in the back of the plane, but he’s aware of the lengths Correa is taking to stay healthy.
“It doesn't surprise me,” Hinch said. “He's trying to do everything he can to make sure that he's completely comfortable, that he's healthy, that he doesn't have another mishap with his back. So I'm a yes on any of that that makes him feel better. I've not gone to the part of the plane where he's sprawled out, but he can do whatever he wants, as long as he's healthy.”
Astros relievers always ready
Unlike during the regular season, when Hinch checks in with his relief pitchers daily to see how they’re feeling and who’s available, the playoffs mean it’s all hands on deck. The frequent off-days make it easier for Hinch to use his best relievers more often, and it’s only in rare cases that any of them would not be available.
Veteran lefty Wade Miley, who threw 2 2/3 innings in relief in Game 3, was likely the only bullpen arm not available for Game 4.
“You can't simply assume that you can get away with not using your guys,” Hinch said. “So the unpredictability of playoff baseball and the rush and the adrenaline that happens at the beginning of the game is much different in the postseason than it is in the regular season, which is why you see a willingness to get guys up sooner, even if you're not going to use them.”
Hinch said key high-leverage relievers Ryan Pressly, Roberto Osuna, Will Harris and Joe Smith typically don’t expect to start warming up until later in the game, but in the playoffs they’re starting to move around in the third inning in case they’re needed.
“You have to assume that teams are willing to do anything, and you have to be prepared to use your guys at any point,” Hinch said.