American League
(1) Tampa Bay Rays vs (6) Houston Astros – In Game 1, the Rays avoided a top of the eighth scare when they had a one-run lead and the Astros had the bases loaded. Diego Castillo came into the game to pitch, got out of the inning with a one pitch inning ending double play and got a five out save. The Rays won the Game 2-1. In Game 2, the Rays 4-2 won behind a first inning three-run home run by Manuel Margot. In Game 3, a five-run top of the sixth inning gave the Rays a 5-2 win and put them one win away from the World Series. However, the Astros were not going to let the series end like this when they won Game 4 by a score of 4-3 with two RBIs by Jose Altuve and a two-run home run by George Springer. The final score in Game 5 was the same as the previous game, 4-3, but this time, the stars of the game for the Astros were George Springer, Michael Brantley, and Carlos Correa who batted in the four runs for the Astros. In Game 6, led by a four-run top of the fifth inning and a two-run top of the seventh inning, the Astros won by a score of 7-4 and forced a Game 7. In a win or go home Game 7, the Rays showed why they deserved to be in the World Series. Two early home runs by Randy Arozenarena and Mike Zunino gave the Rays a 2-0 lead before the end of the first two innings, and they never looked back from there winning the game by a score of 4-2. Speaking after the Game 7 win, Rays manager Kevion Cash said, “It’s a pretty special feeling … It can’t get much better than that. This is a special group to be a part of. It’s fun to see them win games and just to be a part of it.”
National League
(1) Los Angeles Dodgers vs (2) Atlanta Braves – In Game 1, the score was tied at one-run apiece until a four-run top of the ninth led by home runs from Austin Riley and Ozzie Albies as well as a RBI single by Marcell Ozuna gave the Braves a 5-1 lead and ultimately the win. A four-run bottom of the ninth was not quite enough for the Dodgers in Game 2 as the Braves won the game 8-7. The Dodgers bounced back in Game 3 with a dominating 15-3 win that included an eleven-run top of the first inning. The Braves responded in Game 4 with a compelling win of their own by a score of 10-2. Facing elimination, the Dodgers won Game 5 by a score of 7-3 thanks to two home runs by Corey Seager and a home run by Will Smith. In Game 6, a three run bottom of the first was all the Dodgers needed to get the 3-1 win and force a Game 7. The heros of Game 7 for the Dodgers were Mookie Betts who robbed a home run from Freddie Freeman in the top of the fifth, Enrique Hernandez, who hit a game tying home run in the bottom of the sixth, and Cody Bellinger, who hit a go ahead home run in the bottom of the seventh. “It wasn’t me — it was this team,” said NLCS MVP Corey Seager after the game was finished and the Dodgers won their third game in a row as they came back from a three games to one deficit to advance to the World Series.
There are just two teams that remain, but only one of them can win the Fall Classic.The Dodgers and the Rays will play each other in the World Series beginning on Tuesday, October 20 with first pitch happening at 7:09 pm CT.
