A pitcher who spent the majority of the year in minor leagues kept his team in it.
The award was won by a slugger who made a lot of trades.
The Braves will be able to win their 26th Series title if this hardy group can pull it off.
In the seventh inning, Dansby Swanson and Jorge Soler hit back-to-back homers. This gave the Braves a 3-2 win over the Houston Astros. It also gave them a commanding 3-1 Series lead.
Game 5 will be played Sunday night. The Braves will be able to win the championship at home, as they did in 1995 against the Cleveland Indians.
They’ve been tough at home but have improved to 7-0 in the postseason.
Swanson stated, “It’s just so cool for this city.” We have one more. “They have a great club over there, and we don’t take anything for granted.”
This triumph, which was more than 25 years ago at the Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium, is the franchise’s only World Series title since 1966 when it moved to the Deep South.
This is the closest that the Braves have come to a second championship since then.
It would make a stunning crown.
Up to Aug. 6, the Braves were at.500 and worse. After Ronald Acuna Jr. suffered a knee injury, and Marcell Ozuna was forced to retire due to a hand injury and legal problems, the Braves had to rebuild their entire team’s outfield. They won the NL East, with only 88 wins. This was the lowest number of playoff teams and the second-lowest total among all the ones that made it to the postseason.
The Braves received a tremendous boost from an unlikely player, Donald Trump, who was watching from a private box just down the right-field line.
Kyle Wright, a former first-round draft selection, made just two major league appearances in a season that was mostly spent at Triple-A Gwinnett. He got through 4 1/3 critical innings from the bullpen after Dylan Lee, surprise starter, retired one hitter.
Wright was not overpowering. He gave up five hits, including a solo homer from Jose Altuve in the fourth. Wright also walked three times. He pitched in every situation, giving the Braves hope until the offense awakened.
Brian Snitker, Atlanta manager, said that he didn’t know what he did or how important it was. “I am so proud of how he handled this situation.”
Wright’s career record is 2-8 with a 6.56 ERA. He was 0-1 in two starts 2021 for the Braves with a 9.95 ERA.
He admitted, “Honestly, I was a little lost.”
He was just in time to help the Braves.
The sixth inning saw Eddie Rosario become the first Atlanta hitter with a one-out RBI double off Brooks Raley.
Rosario scored on an additional clutch postseason hit by Austin Riley who lined a two out single to left against Phil Maton.
Although the Braves had loaded bases, they didn’t stop there. They managed to engineer the first ever lead change in the Series. Swanson and Soler became the third team in World Series history with back-to-back homers.
Lou Gehrig and Babe Ruth were the first to attempt it.
Swanson faced Cristian Javier and decided to go the opposite direction for a homer, which tied the game at 2. The ball struck so hard that it bounced off the right-field table and rolled back to the infield.
It was almost like “You know what?” Swanson stated, “Let’s just compete and get rid of all the rest.” “And you know what? “Something amazing happened.”
When Soler, one the four outfielders Alex Anthopoulos had acquired in trades, came to the plate as a pinch-hitter, the celebration was barely over.
Javier pitched a 2-1 pitch to Soler. Soler charged a slider and drove it into the Astros bullpen in left. Yordan Alvarez was left helpless on the short fence after the ball flew over his head.
Luke Jackson pitched a scoreless eighth. Rosario caught a great catch, crashing into the same left field wall Soler hit over. Will Smith did a 1-2-3 ninth, his sixth save in six chances.
The Astros can only be chastised for their squandering of so many chances. They were hitless in eight at bats with runners in scoring positions and left 11 base on base overall.
“They’ve been playing with us tough. Manager Dusty Baker stated that they’ve been playing us tough. “We’ve been at the wall before. “Our guys know what to do.”
Seven teams have overcome a 3-1 deficit and won the World Series. The Cubs are the most recent.
The Braves know that it isn’t over. They lost a 3-1 lead in NL Championship Series last year and were defeated by the Dodgers.
Houston received Zack Greinke (38 years old) as its starter. He threw four scoreless innings.
It just wouldn’t stay in the bullpen.
There is no room for error now.
“Just focus on one game at the time. Altuve stated that this is it. “If we win tomorrow then try to win Game 6, and see what happens. We have to be focused on one game and that is tomorrow.
MOVING UP THE CHART
Altuve’s 23rd postseason homer was his second-highest, behind Manny Ramirez (29).
Altuve was a longtime New York Yankees player Bernie Williams.
TRUMP’S CHOP
Trump sat beside Melania, his wife, and mingled with the fans just months after he called for a boycott in Major League Baseball.
Trump claimed he was invited by New York Yankees President Randy Levine and Commissioner Rob Manfred to the game. Major League Baseball denies that he was invited, stating that the ex-president asked to be there.
Trump called for a boycott of MLB games following Manfred’s removal from Atlanta of the All-Star Game due to Georgia’s new voting laws.
Contrary to the 2019 World Series at Washington, where Trump was booed during his time in office, Truist Park received Trump with a warm reception.
He did not announce his appearance to the crowd.
LEE STARTS
Lee was one the most unlikely starters of World Series history.
The left-hander, aged 27, had never pitched in the major leagues before the last weekend of the regular season. He was then called up from Triple A to make a few appearances after the Braves had secured the NL East title.
After spring training, he was released by the Marlins and signed a minor-league deal with the Braves.
Lee was not able to make it through Game 4, but his World Series debut will be forever remembered.
UP NEXT
Framber Valdez, the Astros’ Game 1 Loser, gets his second start in the Series. In a 6-2 loss, the left-hander gave up eight hits, five runs, and two homers over two innings.
The Braves will respond with their second consecutive bullpen match. There is no word yet on who will open the first game in a series that would have gone to Charlie Morton, if it weren’t for his broken leg in Game 1.
