Houston is back in it
Astros tie up World Series with Game 2 domination of Braves
Oct 27, 2021, 10:20 pm
Houston's offense showed up and carried the Astros to a win in World Series Game 2 on Wednesday. Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images
Houston's offense showed up and carried the Astros to a win in World Series Game 2 on Wednesday.
You can't change the past, and in sports, you can't change a game's outcome once it's in the books. The Astros were handed a lopsided loss to start the 2021 World Series, with the Braves coming into Houston and stealing Game 1 with early scoring. Still, according to Jake Odorizzi, there was no angst after the game in Houston's clubhouse:
"After the game last night, you would have thought it was a May 2nd loss. It wasn't like it was a World Series loss. That's why I appreciate this team and the leadership on this team because they definitely know how to handle adverse moments."
A team's mentality after a loss is one thing; how they perform their next game out is another. In Game 2, the Astros displayed that they are better than what they showed the night prior, building a lead that their pitching held to even the series.
Final Score: Astros 7, Braves 2
World Series (Best of Seven): tied 1-1
Winning Pitcher: Jose Urquidy
Losing Pitcher: Max Fried
Urquidy gives Houston five strong innings while they build a lead
With a disappointing outing by Framber Valdez in Game 1, Houston hoped to turn the tide with a strong start by Jose Urquidy. He faced some traffic in the first, with the Braves knocking back-to-back two-out singles, but Urquidy would strand them by striking out the side with a strikeout to end the half-inning. That provided his offense a chance to strike first and grab the momentum, and Jose Altuve would be the man for the job.
Altuve started Houston's night at the plate with a double, then two productive outs behind him brought him home, with Alex Bregman getting the RBI on a sac fly to make it a 1-0 game. Atlanta quickly responded, though, with Urquidy watching a fastball find its way to the Crawford Boxes on a solo homer by Travis d'Arnaud to tie things up in the top of the second.
Urquidy finished that inning and stranded another runner, and then the Astros wasted no time moving things back in their favor. They tagged Max Fried for four runs in the bottom of the second, getting four-straight singles with one out, one an RBI by Jose Siri who legged one out in the infield, then another on a single by Martin Maldonado with a second run scoring on an error during the play. Michael Brantley capped off the big inning with an RBI single of his own, this one with two outs to extend the lead to four runs at 5-1.
That was crazy. đ± pic.twitter.com/j5IbGuEA7BÂ
â MLB (@MLB) October 28, 2021
Urquidy settled in with the new lead, retiring eight in a row before Atlanta would break that streak up with a leadoff single in the top of the fifth. The Braves would bring that runner home later in the inning on an RBI single by Freddie Freeman, but Houston's starter would finish the frame with the lead still three runs. That would be it for Urquidy as Dusty Baker would move to his bullpen in the top of the sixth. Urquidy's final line left him in line for the win: 5.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 7 K, 1 HR, 74 P.
Astros pad their lead
First out of the bullpen for Houston was Cristian Javier in the top of the sixth. He started his night with a strikeout, then erased a one-out double to leave another Atlanta runner in scoring position. More defensive miscues by the Braves afforded the Astros another run in the bottom of the sixth, with a potential double-play ball mishandled with runners on the corners, leaving the inning going and another on the board for Houston, making it 6-2
Javier returned to the mound in the seventh, getting one out and issuing a walk before Phil Maton would take over to get the final two outs of the inning. Altuve put his mark on Game 2 again in the bottom of the inning, launching a leadoff solo homer on the first pitch he saw in the at-bat, pushing the lead to five runs.
ALTUVE!Â
Solo shot on the 1st pitch of the AB! @astros up 7-2! pic.twitter.com/6ZJKmYsQTk
â FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) October 28, 2021
Astros take Game 2 to even up the World Series
With the heart of Atlanta's order due up in the top of the eighth, the Astros opted to bring in closer Ryan Pressly to face the challenge. He started the frame with a leadoff walk, then retired the next three in a row to keep it a five-run lead. With the score still 7-2 going to the top of the ninth, Kendall Graveman entered to finish things off, and he would with a scoreless inning. The victory for Houston sets the World Series even at 1-1, making it a best-of-five in the remaining games.
Up Next: The Fall Classic shifts to Atlanta for the next three games, with both teams having a day off on Thursday before things pick back up with Game 3 on Friday at 7:09 PM Central. In that one, the expected pitching matchup is Ian Anderson, 1-0 with a 2.25 ERA in three starts this postseason, for the Braves and Luis Garcia, 1-1 with a 9.64 ERA in his three starts, for the Astros.
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The phrase most associated with the late former Oakland-Los Angeles-Oakland Raidersâ owner Al Davis was âJust win baby.â One has to think Al would strongly approve of the Houston Astros. Going to the fifth inning Sunday against the Mariners the Astros were facing a 3-0 deficit and staring at the prospect of being swept out of Seattle and having their American League West division lead slashed to just two games. Now after roaring from behind with 11 unanswered runs to take the series finale in the Emerald City, and then sweeping three games from the Diamondbacks in Phoenix, the Astros stand six games up with 60 games to go. So, if the Astros play just .500 ball the rest of the way (which would have them finish with 90 victories), the Mariners have to play .600 ball to catch them. If somehow the Astros are to maintain their season long win pace to the finish line theyâd close with 95 wins, and the race is already over unless someone thinks the Mâs are poised to uncork a finishing kick of 41-19 or better. Itâs quite a pleasing perch from which the Astros survey the standings. Coupled with the freefalling Detroit Tigers having dropped nine of their last ten games, the Astros amazingly start this homestand sporting the best record in the entire American League. On the homestand they follow four games against the team with the second-worst record in the American League (Athletics) with three versus the team with the second-worst record in the National League (Nationals). I know, I know. There is fear of the Astros playing down to the competition, but that is not the way to look at it. A bad Major League team can beat a good team in a series at any time. If it happens it happens, but it wouldnât mean it happened only because the Astros didnât take their opponent seriously. This isnât the NBA.
Trade deadline looming
Of course, It hasnât been all good news with Isaac Paredes badly injuring a hamstring Sunday. Paredes could be back in three weeks (doubtful), he could miss the rest of the season. GET WELL SOON JEREMY PENA! Lance McCullersâs latest Injured List stint could be considered addition by subtraction for the Astrosâ starting rotation. Whether impacted by his blister issue, Lance was lousy in four of his last five starts. So, one week from the trade deadline, if general manager Dana Brown has the ammo to get one deal done, where does he make the upgrade? The left-handed hitter everyone knows the Astros can use regardless of Yordan Alvarezâs status is a natural priority. With the Astrosâ weak farm system it would seem difficult for Brown to put forth the winning offer for the top bats that could be in play. That probably rings even truer now, since if he wasnât already untouchable, Brice Matthews may have cemented untouchable status by darn near winning the first two games of the Diamondbacks series by himself. Matthews is going to struggle mightily to hit for a good average if he canât make notable improvement in the contact department, but the power is obvious, as is the athleticism in the field. The 23-year-old Matthews and 22-year-old Cam Smith (though presently mired in a three for 36 slump) are the clear (and right now only) two young shining beacons for the lineupâs future.
You can't have enough pitching
While Brandon Walter has been a revelation, a starting pitcher would make sense unless the decision is to hope Spencer Arrighetti and/or Cristian Javier can contribute meaningfully upon return to the big leagues, likely sometime next month. Going after a reliever or two may make more sense in terms of availability and transaction cost. Overall the Astrosâ bullpen has been excellent, but Bryan Abreu is the only trustworthy right-handed option for Joe Espada. Back to Walter. Barely two months ago no way Walter himself would have believed heâd be where he is now. Nine starts since being summoned basically out of desperation, Walter has a 3.35 earned run average, and a stunning 13 to one strikeout-to-walk ratio with his 52 strikeouts against a measly four walks allowed in 53 2/3 innings. Walter has pitched fabulously in seven of his nine starts. He only has two wins, but thatâs because in five of the six Walter starts the Astros didnât win the game they failed to score more than two runs. Walter turns 29 years old in September. His only prior big league experience was 23 innings in relief with a 6.26 ERA for the Red Sox two years ago. The Bosox released him last August, the Astros signed him basically as minor league depth. Look at him (and the Astros) now.
For Astro-centric conversation, join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and me for the Stone Cold âStros podcast which drops each Monday afternoon, with an additional episode now on Thursday. Click here to catch!Â
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