WORLD SERIES GAME 1
Dodgers get two HRs, take 1-0 series lead with 3-1 win
Oct 25, 2017, 5:00 am
Dallas Keuchel was solid, but he gave up a late home run to lose Game 1. Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images
The Dodgers were able to get a key Game 1 victory of the World Series thanks to Chris Taylor and Justin Turner taking advantage of a couple of bad pitches in an otherwise fierce pitcher's duel that would ultimately be won by Clayton Kershaw.
Chris Taylor got the scoring started with a homer on the first pitch the Dodgers saw, then Justin Turner added two more on a two-run blast as Kershaw gives up just one run while striking out eleven in a dominant pitching performance in the 3-1 win over the Astros in World Series Game 1. The Dodgers hold a 1-0 series lead with Game 2 tomorrow.
The game got underway with a Clayton Kershaw strikeout of George Springer. Kershaw went on to retire the Astros in order on a flyout and groundout. Dallas Keuchel took the mound in the bottom of the inning for Houston but was met with a home run from Chris Taylor on the very first pitch, giving the Dodgers an early 1-0 lead. Keuchel bounced back to get the next three batters out on a strikeout and two groundouts.
In the bottom of the second, Kershaw had another quick inning to put the Astros down 1-2-3 on 10 pitches. Keuchel gave up a leadoff single to Kike Hernandez but followed it up with a double play ball for the first two outs, then a popout to end the inning and keep the game at 1-0 going into the third.
Josh Reddick hit a one-out single into right field in the top of the third for the first Astros' hit of the night but was left stranded after a bunt strikeout from Keuchel and strikeout of Springer by Kershaw for his fifth of the night. Keuchel gave up another leadoff single in the bottom of the inning, this time to Austin Barnes, who then moved to second on a Kershaw sacrifice bunt. He went on to be doubled up, though, on a perfectly played lineout caught by Carlos Correa that he tossed to Jose Altuve at second for the double play to end the inning and leave the game 1-0 in the Dodgers' favor.
Alex Bregman came through to tie the game with a leadoff solo home run in the top of the fourth to make it a 1-1 game. Kershaw bounced back from it with three consecutive strikeouts to end the half inning. Keuchel had his first 1-2-3 inning in the bottom half including two groundouts to send the tied game into the fifth.
Kershaw had his best inning of the night so far in the top of the fifth, getting two groundouts and a three-pitch strikeout to sit down the Astros on just 6 pitches. Keuchel worked around a one-out single by Corey Seager in the bottom of the inning by getting another double play, his third of the night, to end the inning and leave the game tied 1-1 after five innings.
Kershaw continued to dominate in the top of the sixth with two more strikeouts, bringing his total to 11, and a groundout in another three up, three down inning. In the bottom of the inning, Keuchel issued a two-out walk followed by a two-run home run by Justin Turner to make it 3-1 Dodgers. Keuchel was able to get a strikeout to end the inning, but the damage was done as the Dodgers took the two-run lead into the seventh.
Altuve led off the seventh with a single but was out at second on a fielder's choice hit by Correa. Kershaw followed that with a groundout and fly out to get through the inning. Keuchel was able to get two groundouts for the first two outs in the bottom of the inning but after a Seager single had his night ended by A.J. Hinch. Brad Peacock entered the game and after a walk was able to get a flyout to end the seventh and keep the game at 3-1.
Brandon Morrow was first out of the Dodgers' bullpen in the top of the eighth and made quick work of the Astros on 10 pitches. Chris Devenski pitched the bottom of the eighth for the Astros and threw two strikeouts and a line out for a quick half inning to send the game into the ninth with the Astros in a 3-1 hole.
Kenley Jansen came in for the close in the top of the ninth and was able to get a strikeout and two flyouts to save the 3-1 victory for Los Angeles.
Game 2: First pitch of Game 2 is scheduled for 7:09 PM Central tomorrow and will air on FOX. The Astros will try to even the series 1-1 by sending out their new-found ace, Justin Verlander, who has been dominant in the playoffs with a 4-0 record. The Dodgers send out Rich Hill who posted a 3.32 ERA in the regular season with a 12-8 record but has only pitched 9 innings this postseason during which he has allowed three runs.
It’s May 1, and the Astros are turning heads—but not for the reasons anyone expected. Their resurgence, driven not by stars like Yordan Alvarez or Christian Walker, but by a cast of less-heralded names, is writing a strange and telling early-season story.
Christian Walker, brought in to add middle-of-the-order thump, has yet to resemble the feared hitter he was in Arizona. Forget the narrative of a slow starter—he’s never looked like this in April. Through March and April of 2025, he’s slashing a worrying .196/.277/.355 with a .632 OPS. Compare that to the same stretch in 2024, when he posted a .283 average, .496 slug, and a robust .890 OPS, and it becomes clear: this is something more than rust. Even in 2023, his April numbers (.248/.714 OPS) looked steadier.
What’s more troubling than the overall dip is when it’s happening. Walker is faltering in the biggest moments. With runners in scoring position, he’s hitting just .143 over 33 plate appearances, including 15 strikeouts. The struggles get even more glaring with two outs—.125 average, .188 slugging, and a .451 OPS in 19 such plate appearances. In “late and close” situations, when the pressure’s highest, he’s practically disappeared: 1-for-18 with a .056 average and a .167 OPS.
His patience has waned (only 9 walks so far, compared to 20 by this time last year), and for now, his presence in the lineup feels more like a placeholder than a pillar.
The contrast couldn’t be clearer when you look at José Altuve—long the engine of this franchise—who, in 2024, delivered in the moments Walker is now missing. With two outs and runners in scoring position, Altuve hit .275 with an .888 OPS. In late and close situations, he thrived with a .314 average and .854 OPS. That kind of situational excellence is missing from this 2025 squad—but someone else may yet step into that role.
And yet—the Astros are winning. Not because of Walker, but in spite of him.
Houston’s offense, in general, hasn’t lit up the leaderboard. Their team OPS ranks 23rd (.667), their slugging 25th (.357), and they sit just 22nd in runs scored (117). They’re 26th in doubles, a rare place for a team built on gap-to-gap damage.
But where there’s been light, it hasn’t come from the usual spots. Jeremy Peña, often overshadowed in a lineup full of stars, now boasts the team’s highest OPS at .791 (Isaac Paredes is second in OPS) and is flourishing in his new role as the leadoff hitter. Peña’s balance of speed, contact, aggression, and timely power has given Houston a surprising tone-setter at the top.
Even more surprising: four Astros currently have more home runs than Yordan Alvarez.
And then there’s the pitching—Houston’s anchor. The rotation and bullpen have been elite, ranking 5th in ERA (3.23), 1st in WHIP (1.08), and 4th in batting average against (.212). In a season where offense is lagging and clutch hits are rare, the arms have made all the difference.
For now, it’s the unexpected contributors keeping Houston afloat. Peña’s emergence. A rock-solid pitching staff. Role players stepping up in quiet but crucial ways. They’re not dominating, but they’re grinding—and in a sluggish AL West, that may be enough.
Walker still has time to find his swing. He showed some signs of life against Toronto and Detroit. If he does, the Astros could become dangerous. If he doesn’t, the turnaround we’re witnessing will be credited to a new cast of unlikely faces. And maybe, that’s the story that needed to be written.
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