Nationals World Series: All hands on deck with title on the line in Game 7
After a thrilling Game 6, it will be all hands on deck as the Washington Nationals and Houston Astros play one more World Series game.
We have one game left in the baseball season as the Washington Nationals won on the road again in Game 6 to force a final and decisive Game 7 against the Houston Astros in the 2019 World Series.
It all comes down to this. The Washington Nationals are one game away from bringing home their first-ever World Series championship.
But before we get into Game 7, let’s take a look back at this wild World Series and how we got here.
First of all, a home team has yet to win a game in this World Series — and the Nationals hope that continues in Game 7.
The Nationals jumped out to a 2-0 lead only to lose three in a row at home to fall behind 3-2. But then behind a brilliant performance by Stephen Strasburg in Game 6, the Nationals were able to force a Game 7.
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What I find most interesting about this World Series is that the starter has factored into every decision except one (Greinke didn’t last long enough to qualify for the win in Game 3).
After all of the talk about how both bullpens have been terrible coming into this World Series, a bullpen has yet to decide a game.
Now, the bullpens have certainly allowed teams to extend leads and put them out of reach, but a reliever doesn’t have a single loss in this World Series.
I wonder if that is setting us up for some late-inning dramatics in Game 7.?
It probably won’t matter much in this game because I doubt either starter makes it long enough to qualify for a win.
Only certain pitchers will be allowed to pitch in this game, and they’ll get pulled at the first sign of trouble.
Let’s take a look at the pitching strategies for both teams in Game 7.
Astros Game 7 pitchers
Zack Greinke is the scheduled starter for the Houston Astros in Game 7, but I doubt he’s going to be around for very long.
That’s nothing against Greinke, but A.J. Hinch can’t allow him to work out of jams like he normally would. And Greinke is a pitcher that normally pitches to contact and works with a lot of traffic on the bases.
Even in a game the Astros won in Game 3, Greinke only lasted 4.2 innings after allowing 7 hits and 3 walks. And he had to throw 95 pitches to get those outs.
Here is what I think the strategy will be for the Astros in Game 7.
I think they’re hoping for 4 solid innings from Greinke — twice through the lineup. If they can get 5, even better.
Then I think they use Will Harris, Joe Smith, and Roberto Osuna to get them to the eighth. And then I think we see Gerrit Cole pitch the final two innings.
Another option would be to bring in Jose Urquidy, the Game 4 winner who shutdown the Nationals lineup for 5 innings, if Greinke struggles early.
Those are the only six Astros pitchers you will see in this game — that I can pretty much guarantee you.
Nationals pitchers for Game 7
Because of the amazing performance from Strasburg in Game 6, the Nationals have just about every pitcher available in Game 7.
Max Scherzer, the scheduled starter Wednesday night, warmed up in the bullpen during Game 6 but Dave Martinez didn’t have to use him.
Even with extra rest, it’s hard to see Scherzer going very long in this game with the injuries he’s been dealing with.
I expect this to be another grinder of a game for Scherzer, and I would be happy if the gave us 5 solid innings.
After that, there’s really only three or four pitchers the Nationals can go to in order to finish off the game.
My guess is that Patrick Corbin will be the first man out of the bullpen. Sean Doolittle and Daniel Hudson are the only other two arms the Nationals hope to use in Game 7.
If they need to cover another inning in the middle of the game, it will likely be Anibal Sanchez that gets the ball.
But those are the five pitchers the Nationals will be counting on in Game 7 in order to win the World Series.
Any chance Strasburg could throw one more inning? Doubtful, but it is a Game 7 of the World Series, anything can happen.
Preview and Prediction
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Baseball is impossible to predict, even though I’m a solid 4-2 at picking games this World Series, but a Game 7 is even harder to predict.
As we’ve talked about, every pitcher in this game will be on a short leash. A base runner could mean the end of your night in a winner-take-all game.
With virtually everyone in the bullpen available in Game 7, you can’t wait for a pitcher to work his way out of a jam.
I think both teams would be ecstatic if their starters gave them 5 innings.
Some positives for the Nationals in this game is that they’ve hit very well at Minute Maid Park in this series, and they do have Scherzer on the mound.
Even if it’s a banged-up Scherzer, you know he’s going to give it everything he’s got for as long as he can and keep his team in the game.
Also, Greinke has not been very Greinke-like in this postseason. I think the Nationals can get to him early and force the Astros to make a move.
Plus, the Nationals have to find a way to put a bow on this storybook book season, right?
I mean, this is a Nationals fansite, so did you really think we were going to pick the other team in Game 7?
Winner: Nationals
No matter the outcome, I hope all Nationals fans — and baseball fans, for that matter — sit back and enjoy the final game of the season.
Next. What interference?. dark
And specifically for Nats fans, I hope — win or lose — you can look back at this season and remember just how special it has been.