Braves win opener

Framber Valdez was confident he could rein in his emotions — that starting Game 1 of the World Series wouldn’t be too big for him. Three pitches in, he was already behind. Jorge Soler sent that third pitch from Valdez into the seats in left field, and he and the Astros couldn’t recover as the Atlanta Braves went on to win 6-2 yesterday. Valdez allowed one run in eight sterling innings of a win over the Red Sox in Game 5 of the AL Championship Series, giving the Astros optimism he could help stabilize a rotation rocked by the loss of staff ace Lance McCullers Jr. It was the shortest start in the opening game of a World Series since 2005.