Urquidy steps up once again on mound in big spot for Astros?

MINNEAPOLIS -- Four years ago, Dusty Baker was watching his former team, the Nationals, face off against the team he would go on to manage to a World Series title, the Astros, in the 2019 Fall Classic.

That's when Baker first saw José Urquidy on the mound -- tossing five scoreless innings and earning the win in Game 4 against the eventual World Series champions, no less -- and he had an inkling that the Astros' right-hander was a guy who excelled under pressure.

"I was like, 'Man, who is this dude out there?'" Baker recalled on Wednesday night after Urquidy again came through in a huge spot for Houston, which advanced to its seventh straight American League Championship Series with a 3-2 win over Minnesota in Game 4 of the AL Division Series at Target Field.

It's safe to say that the 2023 campaign did not go quite as planned for Urquidy -- and the Astros as a whole. Following a shaky April, in which he recorded a 5.20 ERA in six starts, Urquidy was placed on the injured list with right shoulder discomfort on May 1, and he sat out for the next three months.

Despite not having a consistent role when he returned to the Astros, Urquidy stepped up when his team needed him most in two key games: First, when he was tabbed for a spot start on Sept. 29, and he outdueled Arizona ace Zac Gallen with six scoreless innings, setting the tone for Houston's eventual three-game sweep in the final weekend of the regular season that secured the AL West title.

And most recently, his performance in Game 4 of the ALDS, when he held the Twins to two runs on three hits and one walk across 5 2/3 innings to go with six strikeouts. Urquidy thrived on missing Minnesota's bats, generating 19 whiffs -- his most in a single outing all season and the third most in his career.

That further solidified Baker's first impression of Urquidy as a big-game pitcher. And Urquidy fully embraces that designation.

"In that kind of situation, I think I have big hunger there," Urquidy said. "Obviously, my focus and my plan to prepare has to be very clear, and I have to put all my mind on it. I feel very comfortable being here with this team … creating a good plan of attack with my catcher.

“I know I've got good offense and defense behind me, and that makes me feel a lot of confidence."

With the Twins fighting to stave off elimination and force a Game 5 at Minute Maid Park, Urquidy surrendered two solo home runs, but he otherwise limited the damage in a tightly-contested pitchers' duel.

Minnesota deployed a bullpen game and was equally stingy, holding Houston to a solo shot by Michael Brantley in the second and a two-run jack from José Abreu in the fourth. But once Urquidy had a lead to work with, he did not relinquish it.

The Astros have seen that grit from Urquidy before, and they hope to see it again with even bigger games ahead.

"We've seen that since his rookie year, winning World Series games for us," Alex Bregman said. "We have a lot of confidence every time he goes and takes the mound. We know what we're going to get every single time: a guy who's competing, a guy who's trying to go execute pitches."