Yuli Gurriel could face disciplinary action after helping Houston Astros take 2-1 World Series lead
Saturday 28 October 2017 09:04, UK
The Houston Astros claimed a 2-1 World Series lead over the Los Angeles Dodgers in a game tinged with controversy on Friday.
The Astros won the game 5-3 in front of their fans at Minute Maid Park but one of their players - first baseman Yuli Gurriel - was forced to apologise afterwards for an offensive gesture he appeared to aim at Dodgers pitcher Yu Darvish.
Cuban import Gurriel hit a home run off the Japanese pitcher in the second inning to give the Astros the lead but was then caught in the dugout making a gesture with his eyes as well as appearing to use the word "chinito" which translates to "little Chinese."
"I didn't want to offend anybody," said Gurriel, who played in Japan for a year before moving to the United States.
"I was commenting to my family that I didn't have any luck against Japanese pitchers here in the United States. I didn't want to offend anybody in Japan. I have a lot of respect for Japan."
Darvish said after the game he felt Gurriel had been "disrespectful" and added: "He made a mistake. He'll learn from it, we're all human beings."
The New York Times reports that Gurriel could face MLB discipline over the incident and that he is expected to meet with commissioner Rob Manfred before Saturday's game four, which also takes place in Houston.
Darvish failed to make it through two innings in Friday's game, giving up three more runs after Gurriel's homer before being taken out of the game by Dodgers manager Dave Roberts.
The Astros led 5-1 after five innings but saw their lead cut after Lance McCullers gave up two runs in the top of the sixth, the second of those coming on a wild pitch from reliever Brad Peacock.
But Peacock was in scintillating form after that mistake and ended up earning the save after remaining on the mound for the rest of the game.
He gave up a single walk and no hits in 3 2/3 innings and enabled the rest of the Astros bullpen to rest ahead of Saturday's encounter, where victory would put the Astros within touching distance of their first World Series title.
