HOUSTON - The Houston Astros are 2022 World Series champions. A big part of the reason for that is the assortment of devastating arms they had. You cannot talk about the Phillies' offense crumbling without giving credit to the likes of Framber Valdez, Cristian Javier, Justin Verlander, Bryan Abreu, Rafael Montero and Ryan Pressly.
It is true, though, that the Phillies offense totally fell apart for the second half of the series. More than that, actually. The Phillies had a 7-0 lead in the fifth inning of Game 3. They got their first two runners on base in the sixth inning. Then they made nine straight outs to end the game.
Of course, we all know plenty about Game 4. They became the second team in World Series history to be no-hit. That means they were 0 for their last 36 going into Game 5.
In Game 5, Kyle Schwarber led off with a home run. They'd only manage one run the rest of the game, though, going 1 for 7 with runners in scoring position and leaving a whopping 12 men on base.
And we just witnessed a Game 6 where they were going to have to make that solo Schwarber blast stand up in a 1-0 win. That's too tall an order for any pitching staff to deal with the Astros' top of the order in Minute Maid Park. It just wasn't going to happen. Astros pitchers held the Phillies to just the lone run on three measly hits.
Once the Yordan Alvarez home run landed on top of the batter's eye, it was clear that was the signature "Big Blow" of the series. The Phillies just weren't going to come back from that, even though it was only two runs. The Astros pitchers were just working them over far too strongly for a comeback to be believable.
After those back-to-back baserunners in Game 3, the Phillies went 9 for 98, which is a batting average of .091. The few times they managed to find a non-homer hit or two, they usually left the runners on.
That's a tough way to topple a titan like the Astros.
Astros World Series gear now available
The Houston Astros have won their second World Series title. Now, you can celebrate with Astros 2022 World Series championship hats, shirts, hoodies, and more. See the entire collection here.
We may receive a commission for purchases made through these links.
