Off-Topic » BOSTON (AP) — J.D. Martinez wants to thank the Houston

Astros — not get back at them — for releasing him when he was struggling to make himself into a star.The Red Sox slugger credits his growing pains in Houston for teaching him “how to fail Aaron Judge Jersey ,” a lesson he credits with transforming him into an MVP candidate who helped Boston win a franchise-record 108 games and reach the AL Championship Series against his former team.“My failures in Houston is what made me who I am,” Martinez said Friday, a day before the Astros and Red Sox open the best-of-seven series. “There’s really no animosity there. In a sense they did me a favor by allowing me to leave and play on another team.”It will be the second straight year the Red Sox and Astros meet in the postseason — last year it was the ALDS — and the second straight year that aces Chris Sale will go against Justin Verlander in the opener.The biggest difference this time: Boston has Martinez on its side.And the Astros could have.Martinez made his big-league debut for Houston in 2011, driving in 28 runs in his first full month in the majors. After playing part time the next two years — hitting 18 homers with 91 RBIs in 199 games — he was 26 years old and batting .167 in the spring of 2014 when the Astros released him, preferring to give the at-bats to top prospect George Springer.Martinez landed with Detroit that season and by 2015 he was an All-Star, hitting 38 homers with 102 RBIs. He hit 45 homers last year, when he was traded from the Tigers to Diamondbacks and was 14th in MVP voting despite playing just 62 games in the NL.“I always believed he’s going to be the player he is right now,” said Astros second baseman Jose Altuve, the reigning AL MVP, who came up through the minors with Martinez. “He got a couple of tough years with us in the big leagues. But I think the best thing that happened to him was going to the Tigers and becoming the player that he is.Verlander was Martinez’s teammate in Detroit and said he was “there from the moment he turned his career around.”“He went and completely revamped his swing that offseason Gleyber Torres Jersey , and saw immediate dividends,” Verlander said. “(He) never stopped hitting. Seeing somebody like that who works so hard and turned their career around to where he’s at now, as a fellow player, and you respect it and I’m happy for him. I really am.’Now Martinez is one of the keys — with Mookie Betts, who is expected to edge him for the AL MVP award — on a Red Sox team that won a third straight AL East title but advanced in the playoffs for the first time since 2013, eliminating the rival New York Yankees in the ALDS.The Central Division champion Astros did OK, too, winning their first World Series last year; Springer was Series MVP.So, no hard feelings.“God gave me another opportunity and put me in a good situation with Detroit. And that’s kind of where I continued to grow until where I am today, really Tyler Austin Jersey ,” Martinez said. “And if it wasn’t for that I probably wouldn’t be here right now. Who knows where I would have been?”Saturday night’s opener will be a rematch of Game 1 of the ALDS last year, when the Astros jumped on Sale for seven runs in five innings, including back-to-back homers by Alex Bregman and Altuve in the first. Altuve added another homer in the fifth.Sale and Verlander each came out of the bullpen in Game 4, with the Red Sox lefty outpitching the Astros ace before tiring in his fifth inning of relief and taking the loss as the Red Sox were eliminated. With the teams meeting one round further along this year, the stakes are even higher.“Obviously, the winner of this one goes to the World Series,” Sale said. “We know who we’re up against. He’s obviously one of the best around, and really good in the postseason.” CHICAGO (AP) — After dealing with ups and downs this season, Kyle Hendricks feels like he’s in a groove.Hendricks allowed two hits in seven innings, David Bote and Kyle Schwarber homered and the Chicago Cubs beat the Cincinnati Reds 9-0 on Sunday to complete a four-game sweep.“My mechanics feel good now. Ball’s doing what I want it to Clint Frazier Jersey ,” said Hendricks, who is 5-2 with a 3.38 ERA in his last 11 starts. “Now it’s just concentration on making the good pitch, every pitch you’re out there. My fastball command has been a lot better, and everything works better off that.”Jason Heyward went 4 for 4 with a triple and drove in two runs for the NL Central-leading Cubs. Bote added two hits and three RBIs.Hendricks (10-10) struck out five and walked one. He has given up two runs in his last 14 innings.“I didn’t make many bad pitches at all and really changed speeds well,” Hendricks said. “(Catcher) Willson (Contreras) had a great game plan back there, calling good pitches.”Hendricks — who was 1-4 with a 7.03 ERA in June — said his change-up has been more effective.“Earlier in the season, I wasn’t able to locate my fastball, so they kind of saw the change-ups,” he said.Tucker Barnhart had two hits for the last-place Reds, who have dropped five straight and been shut out nine times.“They dominated us these four games http://www.athleticsfanproshop.com/authentic-mark-mcgwire-jersey , and you just have to take the day off and hopefully come back with the same energy but get different results,” manager Jim Riggleman said.The Cubs have homered in a season-high 11 straight games and won five straight.Hendricks was lifted for a pinch-hitter after throwing 98 pitches. Randy Rosario worked the final two innings to complete the three-hitter.A balk by Robert Stephenson scored Anthony Rizzo in the seventh inning before Schwarber smacked a two-run home run to right field, his 24th of the season.Bote hit a two-run homer over the left-field bleachers for a 5-0 lead in the third. Five of his six home runs this season have given the Cubs the lead or tied a game. Bote’s previous homer was a walk-off against the Reds in the 10th inning on Friday.The Cubs scored three unearned runs in the first. Heyward tripled to bring in a run when center fielder Billy Hamilton fell trying to catch his line drive.“Jason just spun that ball, and I understand it looked like it was going to go right at him and it just hit that other gear and he slipped,” Cubs manager Joe Maddon said. “That was fortuitous for us because Billy’s that good.”Heyward’s single drove in another run in the fifth inning. He was 0 for 14 in his previous three games.Homer Bailey (1-12) allowed six runs — three earned — and eight hits in five innings to remain winless since May 12. The Reds have lost 17 of his 18 starts.“With all due respect to that lineup over there — they’ve got a really good lineup — but today there was numerous balls that were off the end of the bat, broken bats, bloops,” Riggleman said. “If it could go wrong, it went wrong.“As the game progressed, they squared up on a couple. But overall Homer threw very well. The numbers will never indicate that.”TRAINER’S ROOMReds: 1B Joey Votto (lower right leg) was eligible to come off the 10-day disabled list Sunday but won’t return to the field until Tuesday against Milwaukee at the earliest. Riggleman said the injury is affecting Votto’s ability to run and play in the field.Cubs: 3B/OF Kris Bryant (left shoulder inflammation) and RHP Tyler Chatwood (left hip tightness) will begin rehab assignments with Triple-A Iowa on Monday. Bryant took batting practice Sunday and has been on the DL since July 24. The Cubs can make room for him on the roster if he’s ready before rosters expand Saturday Stephen Piscotty Jersey , Maddon said. … Closer Brandon Morrow (right biceps inflammation) was scheduled to play catch Sunday.FLEXIBILITYWithout an off day until Sept. 13, the Cubs will use a six-man rotation for at least one turn. LHP Mike Montgomery — who is on the disabled list with left shoulder inflammation — is expected to start Thursday in Atlanta. RHP Alec Mills — who joined the rotation to fill in for the injured Chatwood — will start Wednesday against the Mets.UP NEXTReds: After a day off, RHP Anthony DeSclafani (6-4, 4.26 ERA) is set to start Tuesday against visiting Milwaukee and RHP Junior Guerra (6-8, 3.72) to begin a three-game series.Cubs: LHP Jon Lester (14-5, 3.64) is scheduled to start against the visiting Mets and RHP Noah Syndergaard (9-3, 3.38) to open a three-game series Monday.