HOUSTON -- Imagine it from Kevin Cash's perspective.

You spend the entirety of the Tampa Bay Rays' quick turnaround from Wednesday's wild-card win at the Oakland Athletics preparing for a 36-year-old ace who somehow seems to keep getting better. The Rays have beaten Justin Verlander before, but not on this stage -- his stage -- as one of the game's best playoff pitchers. The Houston Astros ace has seen it all and defeated it all.

Still, this is the Rays, the team that prepares for each game so assiduously that every micro-moment feels like an opportunity. Finding a flaw in Verlander's arsenal might be nigh impossible, but if there is a manager and a coaching staff and a cutting-edge organization to do it, it's Tampa Bay.

Then Friday's Game 1 of the American League Division Series begins. Verlander walks the Rays' lead-off hitter, missing with four of five four-steamers. And his velocity is average, so it's not like he is overthrowing. Maybe, just maybe, the Rays are getting Verlander on an off-day. Seven innings later, the sum total of Cash's offense: zero runs, one hit.

And then, on top of everything, during his postgame news conference Cash has it pointed out that he'll have to face Verlander again if the series goes long. The Rays manager is asked if there is anything at all he saw from his hitters that would be encouraging if that comes to pass.

"No," Cash says, snickering. "We got Verlander'd."

That kind of sums up Tampa Bay's predicament. To advance to the AL Championship Series, the Rays almost certainly have to beat a pitcher so dominant that his name has become a verb. Of course, that's just the tip of Cash's rapidly melting iceberg. Consider this set of stats:

Innings: 212 1/3
Record: 20-5
ERA: 2.50
Strikeouts: 326
bWAR: 6.9

Impressive, right? Those aren't Verlander's numbers, though they are a near facsimile of what he accomplished during the regular season. They belong to Houston's Game 2 starter, Gerrit Cole.

According to Statcast data, the hardest-hit ball off Verlander in Game 1 was 97.5 mph. There was only one instance during the regular season in which the Rays failed to hit at least one ball with triple-digit exit velocity against a starter who went at least five innings. That starter: Gerrit Cole, on Aug. 28.

"It's just a fabulous environment to be in," Cole said. "It's just been a blessing to come here and meet all these people and be able to learn from such masters of their craft. The talent in the room is second to none."

The Astros' offense is elite, perhaps the best in baseball. The defense is above average. They are athletic, too, taking advantage of the slow delivery of Rays starter Tyler Glasnow to swipe three bags in Game 1. The bullpen is deep, versatile and solid. But the rotation AJ Hinch is rolling out is what, more than anything, could mark the 2019 Astros as a historically special team.

On Thursday, Astros manager AJ Hinch was asked about his thoughts on Tampa Bay's pioneering use of the opener. If he needed to use it, he'd be all for it. But when your top three are Verlander, Cole and Zack Greinke, why even think about it?

"I didn't do this, but [what] I wanted to do in August was text [Cash] and say, I don't know if you're going with an opener, but I'm going with Verlander, Greinke and Cole," Hinch said. "And the same goes for this series.

"As long as I've got this type of top-end rotation, then I certainly firmly believe in the starting pitcher setting the tone and doing all the things that a normal, traditional starting pitcher would do."

Including Verlander's Game 1 gem, and since the Astros acquired Greinke from the Arizona Diamondbacks at the deadline, the trio of aces have been dazzling. Their combined record is 24-3, with a 2.19 ERA, 278 strikeouts over 209 2/3 innings and just 34 walks. Each one of their post-deadline pitching lines, extrapolated to a full season, would be Cy Young Award-worthy.

The proven ace is a dying breed. Postseason baseball is now supposed to be about getting your pitcher through the order a couple of times, if that, then turning the game over to a parade of hand-picked reliever-hitter matchups. And as even the Astros have done, sometimes that parade includes heretofore aces, such as Verlander, Chris Sale and Clayton Kershaw, who have all had crucial relief outings in recent years.

But this current Houston model is straight out of the 1970s -- to an extent. Hinch isn't likely to ride his aces past the point of fatigue -- he has that solid bullpen, after all -- but the intent remains to get those three pitchers deep. If that happens two more times against the Rays, Hinch might be able to postpone his decision on a fourth starter. The two candidates for the job -- lefty Wade Miley and righty Jose Urquidy -- began the series in the bullpen, with Hinch saying the choice would come down to how the series unfolds. For that to matter, the Rays are going to have to beat a Cy Young-caliber starter.

"I think it's not just the pitchers," Cole said. "I think we have one of the best managers in the game. I think we have some of the best hitting coaches in the game. We have some of the best position players. I think the common theme between everybody is communication and the willingness to just get better, however small the detail is."

Verlander has lauded his conversations with Cole, and both have spoken about the thrill of picking Greinke's brain over the past couple of months. It's like a think tank of scientists featuring Einstein, Tesla and Newton, all after they'd already reached respective immortality.

Before the opener, we featured a metrics-based story arguing that the Astros might have the best postseason roster ever assembled. The key metric there was "Active WAR" -- a version of WAR that combines five years' worth of track record and the most recent season.

If you zero in on the Big Three of the Astros, it's no surprise they rank high among postseason ace trios, through the modern era, by combined Active WAR:

TOP ACE TRIOS SINCE 1901

1. 2002 Arizona Diamondbacks (Act. WAR: 19.20)
-- Randy Johnson, Curt Schilling, Byung-Hyun Kim

2. 1996 Atlanta Braves (Act. WAR: 18.80)
-- Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, John Smoltz

3. 2011 Philadelphia Phillies (Act. WAR: 18.60)
-- Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels

4. 1997 Atlanta Braves (Act. WAR: 18.01)
-- Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, John Smoltz

5. 1931 Philadelphia Athletics (Act. WAR: 17.76)
-- Lefty Grove, George Earnshaw, Rube Walberg

6. 1913 New York Giants (Act. WAR: 17.45)
-- Christy Mathewson, Jeff Tesreau, Rube Marquard

7. 1912 New York Giants (Act. WAR: 17.33)
-- Christy Mathewson, Jeff Tesreau, Rube Marquard

8. 1973 New York Mets (Act. WAR: 17.26)
-- Tom Seaver, Jerry Koosman, Jon Matlack

9. 2019 Houston Astros (Act. WAR: 17.20)
-- Justin Verlander, Gerrit Cole, Zack Greinke

10. 1998 Atlanta Braves (Act. WAR: 17.16)
-- Greg Maddux Tom Glavine, John Smoltz

That's some pretty heady company for the Astros to be keeping, but they might not want to keep it. That's because one thing the other members of the top 10 have in common: None of them won the World Series during the season listed above.

That's why when confronted with questions about their elite rotation, the Astros tend to steer things back to the overall team context. They know what history tells us: A power trio of starting pitchers doesn't guarantee a title. It'll take contributions from everybody.

Still, those contributions look a whole lot better when they are piggybacked onto a seven-inning, zero-run, one-hit start like the one Houston got Friday from Verlander. It's the type of dominant performance that Cole has delivered time and again all season, and the type of high-skilled excellence Greinke has delivered since the middle of the 2000s. The Rays just got Verlander'd. Now they have to keep from being Cole'd and then Greinke'd.

Still, it's a nice thing to have your name verbalized, right?

"I don't know," Verlander demurred. "I mean, I guess it's a pretty great compliment. I don't know what else to say, other than that."

Jacob Stockdale says that Ireland have to enjoy their rugby if they are to rediscover their impressive 2018 form.

Ireland laboured to a win over Russia as they recovered from a shock defeat to host nation Japan in Pool A.

Stockdale has praised head coach Joe Schmidt, saying he strikes a balance.

"It's amazing how much pressure one man can put on one team. When we are training Joe likes to push the intensity and really build it," said the Ulster winger.

"That's class for us as players because you're getting that intensity in training that's nearly like a match week.

"It's brilliant that he does that and then whenever you are off he is a bit more relaxed, and you get to chill out a bit, so I think it is a really good balance in that sense."

Losing doesn't get any easier

"There's a lot more than doing your analysis to beat a team," admitted Stockdale on Ireland's patchy World Cup form.

"They (Japan) played very well and we didn't match that level but that's the nature of rugby.

"I've experienced a few losses in an Ireland shirt now and they don't get any easier.

"It was incredibly disappointing, you don't really expect to be feeling that way after your second Rugby World Cup game.

"The next day you feel sorry for yourself and you lick your wounds, but then after that you start training again so you can't be lying about and moping.

"You just have to get on with it, it was a tough couple of days but I always find it is easier once training starts again because it gives you something to focus on.

"You can motivate yourself and just put the rest of it behind you."

Stockdale has credited Keith Earls for his positive attitude, who himself changed his approach from the previous World Cup in England.

"He was saying how much pressure they felt they were under before the 2015 World Cup and this time around he says he isn't letting the pressure get to him," Stockdale said on his fellow winger.

"He was just going out to enjoy the rugby and that's what I took from that.

"You can get wound up by not playing the perfect game every week and that pressure can build up to the point where it takes control of you.

"Or else you go out, enjoy your rugby and be confident in your ability .

"That's a much better way to do it than the other way round."

Samoa 'like a Six Nations game'

Chris Farrell, who missed the Russia victory through concussion, says that Ireland's final Pool A match will feel more like a Test match.

"After the Japan game we said we were lucky to have a five-day turnaround," said the Munster centre, "We wanted to get back out and put things right.

"There was always going to be some uneasy energy around the team for a day or two after the Japan game because the boys were a little bit down from it.

"Next week will be nice because we will have a full game prep.

"It will feel more like a Six Nations or November series test match because we have a full week leading up to it.

"I would have loved to have been out there (For the Russia game) but in the warm-ups we were looking around and giving the ball back to the kickers, and I could see that there were so many Irish fans in the stadium.

"There were so many Irish around and I'm sure the Samoa game will be no different.

"It will be incredible to play in that."

WATSONVILLE, Calif. – Justin Sanders won the 30 lap season finale for the Taco Bravo Sprint Car Series Friday at Ocean Speedway while J.J. Ringo was crowned the series champion.

Sanders, in his yellow No. 17 North County Plastering/Andy’s Construction-sponsored car, led the entire distance after starting on the pole, beating out Brad Furr and Colby Copeland. Ringo and Joey Ancona rounded out the top-five.

Ringo and Bud Kaeding entered the season’s final race tied in the track’s 360 series points battle.  Ringo, who started eighth, and Kaeding, a 10th place starter, spent most of the feature at each other’s heels.  It would be Kaeding who would pass Ringo on the 26th circuit, giving him the advantage.

A lap later Kaeding, while lapping the slower car of Richard Fajardo, would run over his left rear tire coming out of the second turn, sending his black No. 69 sprint car into a series of flips, bringing out the red flag.  Ringo would slip to the outside of Fajardo, avoiding the accident and safeguarding a good enough finish to claim the title.

Kaeding’s damaged car would be towed to the work area where enough repairs were made to allow him to rejoin the contest.  His beat up car was no longer competitive, and he would limp around to a disappointing 13th-place finish.

A jubilant Ringo did victory donuts in the fourth turn, stalling the car.  He would be pushed to the front stretch where his crew greeted him with a champagne bath even before he could exit the car.

Once out, Ringo mounted the top wing, where he did a series of fists pumps and then ran across the track to the crossover gate, where he entered the grandstands and he continued to celebrate with the fans all while still wearing his race helmet.

The finish:

Justin Sanders, Brad Furr, Colby Copeland, J.J. Ringo, Joey Ancona, John Clark, Koen Shaw, Trent Canales, Jeremy Chisum, Tristan Guardino, Jake Andreotti, Jake Hagopian, Bud Kaeding, Keith Day Jr., Evan Bonnema, Richard Fajardo, Ricky Brophy, William, Camara, Jason Chisum, Bud Foland.

TUSCUMBIA, Ala. – Jake Knowles drove the Knowles Race Parts and Bodies Longhorn to his fifth Durrence Layne Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series win of the season on Friday night at North Alabama Speedway.

Knowles took the lead on lap 24 and then held off a late-race challenge from Wil Herrington to score the $2,000 victory in the 40-lap event.

“This race track was race friendly tonight, just like it is every time we come here,” Knowles said. “I could run just about anywhere I wanted to, and I think we learned some things tonight that will help us tomorrow night. We’re got a good string of wins and a second-place thrown in there at this track, which is one of my favorite places to race.”

Herington came from the tenth starting spot to finish second in the Middle Georgia Roofing CVR. Christian Hanger raced in the top five all race long, and took third by a bumper in the Hanger Racing CVR.

Josh Putnam put on a show at North Alabama Speedway with a fourth-place finish in the Putnam Racing Special after starting outside the top-10. Polesitter Tyler Wood led the first 23 laps of the race and ended up fifth.

The finish:

Jake Knowles, Wil Herrington, Christian Hanger, Josh Putnam, Tyler Wood, Cruz Skinner, Seth McCormack, Grant Garrison, Mitchell Holloway, Matt Cooper, Jordan Hedger, Oakley Johns, Ben Brocato, Jake Rainey, Mike Henn, Donald Johns, Marcus Minga, T.J. Brittain, Brock Hall, Steve Russell, Grayson Brewer, Riley Hickman, Justin Maxwell, Evan Ellis.

BURIRAM, Thailand — Fabio Quartararo got the best of Maverick Vinales and Marc Marquez to win the pole for the PTT Thailand Grand Prix MotoGP.

Quartararo rode his Petronas Yamaha SRT to the best lap of the session at one minute and 29.719 seconds to edge Monster Energy Yamaha rider Vinales by .106 seconds.

MotoGP point leader Marquez was third quick, .212 seconds behind Quartararo on his Respol Honda machine.

Quartararo’s teammate, Franco Morbidelli, was fourth, with Ducati rider Danillo Petrucci rounding out the top five.

ZOLDER, Belgium — On a drying Circuit Zolder, Thomas Ferrando grabbed his maiden ELITE 1 Division pole position while Giorgio Maggi scored his fourth back-to-back pole position in the ELITE 2 Division.

In the ELITE 1 Division, Thomas Ferrando took advantage of his slick General Tire tyres to top the chart in Superpole, turning the 4-km of Circuit Zolder in 1:45.720 in his very last lap. The CAAL Racing driver became the seventh different Pole Award winner of the 2019 season, further highlighting the extreme parity in the top division’s field.

“It’s amazing to win the pole position,” said the 2017 ELITE 2 Division champion. “It was exciting but also not easy to handle the car in those damp conditions and there were different strategies with different types of tires. The team did a really great job and gave me a great car to grab this Pole Award. I’m really happy and now I’m hoping for a good race this afternoon. If Gianmarco Ercoli can win an ELITE 1 Division race as a former ELITE 2 Division champion, I can do it, too! I will give my best to grab the win today.”

Brand Hatch race winner and RDV Competition driver Frederic Gabillon ended up second just 0.167 seconds shy of his fellow countryman. The Frenchman edged Marc Goossens, who’s back at the wheel of the No. 78 Braxx Racing Ford Mustang on the track where he won his first NASCAR race in 2017.

The No. 11 PK Carsport Chevrolet Camaro of Stienes Longin was heavily damaged in the ELITE 2 Division practice on Friday with NWES rookie Niels Albert at the wheel. The PK Carsport team managed to repair the car and put Longin in fourth place for the first of the two ELITE 1 Division Finals. Racing Engineering’s Romain Iannetta completed the top five.

Hezemans’ closest rival for the Euro NASCAR title, Nicolo Rocca, continued to struggle on the damp but drying Circuit Zolder. The Italian only finished eleventh at the wheel of his #24 PK Carsport Chevrolet Camaro. He edged Alon Day, who despite being quickest in Free Practice on Friday will start from twelfth on the grid in ELITE 1 Final 1. The Israeli’s goal is to tie Ander Vilarino’s record of 22 NWES wins, but he will have to carve his way up the ranks in the race.

Challenger Trophy leader Henri Tuomaala was the fastest among silver and bronze drivers in the ELITE 1 Division in 17th place. Alexander Graff, Ander Vilarino and Jacques Villeneuve all missed the cut to Superpole and will start respectively 15th, 19th and 20th.

Hendriks Motorsport’s Giorgio Maggi clocked a 1:42.910 lap around the 4-kilometer track in the woods of Limburg and grabbed his fourth consecutive pole position of the 2019 ELITE 2 Division championship. The points leader will have a significant advantage on title rival Lasse Soerensen, who only qualified sixth.

“It was a really tricky session because I had a big moment in turn 3,” said Maggi. “It was really hard to judge how fast I could go through that part of the track. It went well and the car felt good. I’m really happy to grab my fourth pole here at Circuit Zolder. The conditions were difficult, because some parts on track the track were faster than other parts and we really had to find out, how fast we can go from corner to corner.”

Nicolo Rocca was the last driver to score four back-to-back pole positions and he did it in the 2015 ELITE 1 Division championship.

Vittorio Ghirelli on his No. 24 PK Carsport Chevrolet Camaro ended up second 0.662 seconds behind the polesitter. NWES newcomer Hugo De Sadeleer confirmed the impressive pace he showed at Hockenheim by grabbing third place on his No. 88 Racing Engineering Ford Mustang.

Maggi’s teammate Martin Doubek ended up fourth ahead of Alex Caffi Motorsports’ Jesse Vartiainen, who closed the top five with another strong performance.

With the men's 2019-20 season kicking off, we asked our college hockey experts -- Chris Peters and John Buccigross -- to chime in on some of the bigger topics this year. Can the dominant Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs be stopped this season, and what other players and teams will we be watching this season? And be sure to check out Peters' full men's college hockey preview (ESPN+).

Can anyone catch Minnesota Duluth this season?

Peters: The short answer is yes, just because men's college hockey is never predictable and the parity is at an all-time high. But when you look at the combination of returnees who were part of both championships, especially goalie Hunter Shepard who has been lights out, it's hard to see too many teams across the country stacking up. Add in the consistency and the high standard head coach Scott Sandelin has brought in, and the Bulldogs are still my favorite to win it all and become the first team since Michigan in the 1950s to win three straight titles.

Buccigross: I really think Penn State can give UMD a run. The Nittany Lions have a lot of depth at forward and should put up a lot of goals. And they are very well coached by Guy Gadowsky, who has shown he could make a good NHL coach.

Which team do you think will surprise this season?

Buccigross: There is so much parity in #cawlidgehawkey that the days of major surprises are over. Air Force and Minnesota State should win their leagues and be able to make a run. Minnesota State, in particular, is much better and could be a real factor this season.

Peters: UConn is not a big-time power, but I think it has a chance to make some noise in Hockey East this season. The team has slowly been building with some intriguing recruiting classes heavy on European talent. Adding to a core that already includes talented forwards Ruslan Iskhakov (New York Islanders), Jachym Kondelik (Nashville Predators) and goalie Tomas Vomacka (Predators), the Huskies have a few blue-chip recruits in Vladislav Firstov (Minnesota Wild) and Matej Blumel (Edmonton Oilers).

I think this all hinges on Vomacka's ability to play big-time minutes in net and continue his success. The Huskies aren't likely to be a real power in college hockey, but they're going to start taking steps out of the shadows in Hockey East.

Which players are you most excited to watch this season?

Peters: It's hard to narrow it down to one, but I'll have to go to one of the guys I enjoyed watching most last season in the build up to the NHL draft: Boston University freshman forward Trevor Zegras. The Terriers desperately need their young guys to play big roles, and I think Zegras has the hockey sense and the speed to challenge NCAA defenses. His creativity with the puck and ability to make plays you can't see coming is why the entertainment value is so high with him -- and also why the Anaheim Ducks picked him ninth overall last year.

College hockey is going to challenge him, so I'm most interested to see how he absorbs that challenge and whether or not he excels under pressure.

Buccigross: I am excited to see Alex Limoges and Evan Barratt from Penn State, Hugh McGing from Western Michigan and obviously Cole Caufield and Alex Turcotte from Wisconsin. Caufield could win the Hobey Baker Award. Western Michigan's Wade Allison could also have a monster season, if healthy.

And Spencer Knight of Boston College is definitely a goaltender to watch. Boston College could be back in the national picture this season, starting with Knight in net.

How about a Frozen Four prediction?

Buccigross: I'd go with Minnesota Duluth, Penn State, Denver and Minnesota State. And I have the Nittany Lions taking it home with that great offense.

Peters: Let's go with Minnesota Duluth, Minnesota State, Wisconsin and Cornell. As for a champion, I'm calling for a three-peat out of the UMD Bulldogs. They're just too good and too experienced.

The road to the 2020 Men's Frozen Four in Detroit begins in earnest Saturday afternoon with Boston University traveling to Union to kick off the regular season (ESPN+). The field often feels wide open, but Minnesota Duluth enters the season as the two-time defending champion. Despite not having the high draft picks or the historic success of some other programs, the Bulldogs have pretty much owned the past decade. Can anyone catch them?

That chase should be a lot of fun to watch. The men's college hockey landscape is littered with big-time talent, exciting teams and excellent coaches. Some of the traditional powers are still looking to regain some of their shine, and other teams are taking steps toward national prominence. And with 202 NCAA alumni dotting NHL opening-night rosters -- including nine who appeared in the college ranks last season -- there are few better places to get a glimpse of the future of the highest level of the sport than men's Division I hockey.

Here's a look at the teams and players you should know heading into the season.

Teams to watch | Peters' top 10
2020 draft watch | Hobey hopefuls
Big questions for this season

TEAMS TO WATCH

Minnesota Duluth

Can the Bulldogs really three-peat? It has happened one time in the 61-year history of the NCAA men's hockey tournament, when Michigan won three straight titles between 1951 and 1953. In an age of parity and early departures for the NHL, and amid the general difficulty of maintaining such a high level of success, Minnesota-Duluth has been remarkably consistent. The team has appeared in each of the past three national championship games and has three titles under Scott Sandelin, dating back to the school's first in 2011.

UMD had some significant losses from last season's squad, but it still has its two-time national champion goaltender Hunter Shepard. Additionally, much of the team's D corps opted to return to school this year, led by St. Louis Blues prospect Scott Perunovich and Winnipeg Jets draft pick Dylan Samberg, who each could have gone pro after last season. Three of the team's top five scorers from last season, Perunovich, Justin Richards and Minnesota Wild draft pick Nick Swaney, are also still on the roster.

Most importantly, Sandelin returns behind the bench after NHL teams were showing interest all summer. If any other team wants to win the title this season, it's going to have to get through the Bulldogs first.

Denver

A trip to the Frozen Four almost appeared ahead of schedule for the inexperienced Pioneers and rookie head coach David Carle in 2018-19. The freshman-laden squad got major impact from its first-year players, including goalie Filip Larsson, who opted to sign with the Detroit Red Wings after the season. But Denver is bringing back the core of the freshman class, including second-leading scorer and Calgary Flames draftee Emilio Pettersen.