ATLANTA -- After a loss in which the bullpen blew a lead after a gutsy outing from an on-his-last-legs Zack Greinke, the Houston Astros are on the cusp of losing the World Series. The Atlanta Braves now have a commanding 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven series.
The culprit? The offense is struggling mightily, and if the Houston bats don't get it together as soon as possible, it's over.
In Game 1, the high-octane Astros offense scored two runs. They had traffic, but they couldn't complete the job. They were 1 for 9 with runners in scoring position, leaving nine runners on.
They did score seven runs in Game 2, but look under the hood. In their big inning -- the four-run second -- they had five singles and only one was hit hard. They hit a bunch of grounders that found holes. They still went 3 for 12 with runners in scoring position and left six runners on base.
In Game 3, they were dominated. They were shutout. They almost got no-hit. They only hit eight balls hard all night. They didn't have much traffic, but they still managed to leave six runners on base.
In Saturday's Game 4? They let the Braves hang around until it finally bit them. In the first inning, Jose Altuve reached on an infield single and then Michael Brantley walked. Alex Bregman, who is having a dreadful series, then struck out in a weak at-bat. Yordan Alvarez walked, so the bases were loaded with one out as the Astros chased Braves opener Dylan Lee. Carlos Correa followed with a soft grounder that scored one, but the other two runners were left on. It was a big win for the Braves to only allow one run after three of the first four batters reached.
In the second, they had runners on first and second with one out and couldn't get anyone home. In the third, they again had runners on first and second with one out and failed to score. Altuve homered in the fourth inning, but it was a solo shot. The Astros then left a runner on third in the fifth. They left one in the sixth. They left another in the seventh.
Then came the Braves' back-to-back homers to take the lead.
The Astros went 0 for 8 with runners in scoring position. They left 11 men on base in a one-run loss that pushes their backs against thee wall.
The Astros were the most-prolific offense in the AL during the regular season. They flashed heavy offense in both the ALDS and ALCS, and did not face elimination this October until now.
They now face a win-or-go-home Game 5 Sunday night in Atlanta. And it's because they've gone 4 for 32 (.125) with runners in scoring position. They've scored 11 runs in four games and have left 32 runners on base. You have to credit the Braves' pitching and defense for getting out of all those jams, too, of course, but leaving this many runners on is a poor offensive showing.
"They say good pitching beats good hitting," said Astros manager Dusty Baker. "They've been pitching great against us"
The good news for the Astros is hitting with runners in scoring position tells us a story of how the series got here, but it's not a predictive stat. That is to say, it doesn't mean they are going to be terrible with runners in scoring position in Game 5, necessarily. It just says that's why they've left so many runners on.
And in fact, getting so many baserunners in Games 1, 2 and 4 is a good sign there's still a strong offense hiding in there somewhere. If it doesn't come out of hiding for Game 5, the Braves will likely win their first World Series title since 1995.
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October 31, 2021 at 11:52AM
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World Series: Astros' potent offense has had plenty of chances, but Houston's bats aren't coming through - CBS Sports
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