The Washington Nationals have taken a 2-0 series lead over the Houston Astros after dominating them 12-3 in game two on Wednesday night. They won game one on Tuesday by a score of 5-4. The most impressive part of their 2-0 series lead is the fact that both games were won on the road against the Astros two best pitchers.
The Nats scored five off of Gerrit Cole in game one, getting some very timely hitting unlike what the New York Yankees did in the ALCS. They tagged four off of Justin Verlander in game two before getting three off of Ryan Pressley.
Anthony Rendon hit a two-run double in the first inning before Alex Bregman responded with a two-run homerun. It stayed tied at two until the seventh when the Nationals put up a six-spot thanks to a solo-shot off the bat of Kurt Suzuki and three weakly hit singles. They put up three more in the eighth and one more in the ninth.
Now, the series shifts back to Washington for the next three games. Anibal Sanchez gets the ball on Friday against Zack Greinke, and Patrick Corbin will get the ball on Saturday as the Astros will go with a bullpen game.
The real question is, what happened to the Astros? They’ve played awful in the World Series. The best part of their team, their starting pitching, has failed them and now their backs are against the wall.
Friday is absolutely a must win game for Houston. Losing on Friday puts them down 3-0, forcing them to win their next four for another title. To have a shot, they ideally need to sweep in D.C., but may be able to make two of three on the road work.
If they want a shot, the Astros need to figure a lot out fast.