Dusty Baker dismisses concerns over Astros' loss in ALCS opener - "I'd rather lose it in the first game rather than the middle"

The Houston Astros suffered a shutout loss against the Texas Rangers in game 1 of their AL Championship Series duel. The Astros were beaten 2-0 on a night where the pitching was too strong for the lineups to counter.

Jordan Montgomery held the defending champions to 6.1 scoreless innings giving away just five hits. He faced a tough 2 outs bases loaded situation in the fourth but avoided the traffic and went hitless after that.

His compatriot, Justin Verlander, started his 36th postseason game of his career. He had an impressive performance as well, earning two runs over an RBI-single by Jonah Heim and a solo home run by Loedy Traveras.

As for manager Dusty Baker, he is very less concerned about the team's loss. The Atros have found themselves in such positions before. The last time they lost the first game in a playoff series at home, they went on to win the World Series against the Philadelphia Phillies. Therefore they are not hitting any panic stations as of yet.

“Well, this team is the best I've been around about moving on,” Astros manager Dusty Baker said. “And there's nothing you can do. If you're going to lose a game, you'd rather lose it in the first game versus in the middle of the series. And so we know we've got a tough pitcher in [Nathan] Eovaldi tomorrow. But we also have a tough pitcher in Framber [Valdez] on our side.”

Odds are slighty stacked against Astros after shutout loss

Even though Dusty Baker's side seems to be relaxed after the shutout defeat, a loss in the first game stacks up the odds against them. As per statistics, the game 1 winning side is best of seven series has gone to win 121 out of the 188 encounters. In the current 2-3-2 home and road playoff format, the winning side has a 54 percent win rate, taking 39 out of the 70.