By Alexis Barton
It’s the most wonderful time of year for baseball fans– it’s October. October baseball is a thing of beauty for those who cheer across the nation, and it’s particularly wonderful when the competition winds down to the two final teams. In this year’s World Series, the Atlanta Braves are taking on the Houston Astros. As we head into the Halloween weekend, the two teams will face off in the third, fourth, and fifth games of the series, all of which will be hosted by Atlanta.
The series is tied 1-1 heading into the weekend, with both teams putting forth excellent offensive efforts in each of their winning games. In Game 1, Houston took a beating at home in their 6-2 loss. Luckily for them, the tides turned for Game 2 and the Astros were able to pull out a 7-2 victory over the visitors. With such variability in how each team has performed thus far, it’s hard to tell who exactly will come on top of the next game, let alone the rest of the series.
For the Braves, it is absolutely vital that they rely on their depth. In the first game of the series, their six individual scorers brought them to success. This has been the theme throughout their season, and it will hopefully lead them to a successful series to win it all. Especially after their pitcher Charlie Morton broke his leg, they will have to rely on a high-scoring offense to keep the Astros at bay.
For Houston, it truly is a matter of whether or not they want to win. The talent within their lineup is remarkable, starting with second baseman Jose Altuve. Despite his slow start in the postseason, Altuve has fallen into his rhythm as seen in his two goals in Game 2 of the series. He is an electric player both for fans and his teammates alike to watch. If he can energize his team, there is not much that can stop them.
Games 3-5 of the World Series will take place in Atlanta on October 29th, 30th, and 31st, respectively. After that, the teams will travel back to Houston for at least one more game to finish out the postseason.
