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Astros player: Darvish tipped pitches in disastrous World Series starts

Christian Petersen / Getty Images Sport / Getty

When the Los Angeles Dodgers traded for Yu Darvish at the 2017 trade deadline, it was with their eyes on the postseason. An ace throughout his tenure with the Texas Rangers, he was expected to bolster an already impressive rotation featuring lefties Clayton Kershaw, Alex Wood, and Rich Hill.

But after a pair of solid starts in the NLDS and NLCS, Darvish imploded. Facing the Houston Astros in the World Series, Darvish made it through only 3 1/3 innings over two starts, allowing nine runs (eight earned) on nine hits and a pair of walks. The Dodgers, unsurprisingly, lost both games.

An unnamed Astros player has now revealed how they got to him: Darvish was tipping his pitches. If Darvish re-gripped the ball as he brought it to his glove, it indicated a slider/cutter. If he didn't, it was a fastball, the player told Sports Illustrated's Tom Verducci.

"We knew the first time we faced him (in Game 3)," the player said. "The next time (in Game 7) it was mostly the same, but then it was more about just having a great game plan going in. We knew he was going to try to go back to his slider to find it. We had a great approach."

In the deciding Game 7, the Astros jumped out to a 5-0 lead after two innings, and never looked back.

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