A perfect start turned into a nightmare for Justin Verlander and the Houston Astros in Game 1 of the World Series against the Philadelphia Phillies on Friday night.
Speaking to reporters after the Astros' 6-5 loss in 10 innings, Verlander shouldered the blame for not protecting a five-run lead.
"I need to do better," he said. "No excuses. I felt like I had some guys in good situations and just wasn't able to quite make the pitches that I wanted to. A lot of credit to [the Phillies] as a lineup. They laid off some good pitches, and they were able to, when I did execute pitches, they were able to foul it off or put it in play and find a couple hits that way.