PHILADELPHIA — The Astros tied this World Series with history, and they grabbed their first Series lead with mystery. They did not need a no-no to win Game 5, just deft maneuvers and sneaky vanishing acts every time the Phillies threatened to turn the momentum of the moment back in their favor.
Houston’s 3-2 victory Thursday night at Citizens Bank Park not only put the Astros on the precipice of their second World Series crown in six seasons, but it finally got Justin Verlander in the Fall Classic win column in his ninth career attempt.
Contrary to the unmistakable mastery displayed by Cristian Javier and his buddies in the bullpen in the first combined no-hitter in Series history a night earlier, this win did not come easily or breezily for Verlander and the Astros. But it came — and established a 3-2 edge that 31 of 47 (65.9%) previous Game 5 winners in Series tied 2-2 have converted into a crown — because for every jam there was a lam, for every obstacle there was, literally, an out. The frustrated Phillies stranded 12 baserunners along the way.
Two early RBIs from Jeremy Peña, who singled home a run in the first inning and became the first rookie shortstop to homer in the World Series with a solo shot off Noah Syndergaard in the fourth, were enough to stake Verlander to a 2-1 lead. In five hard-fought innings, Verlander allowed just one run — a Kyle Schwarber leadoff blast on the second pitch he threw.
Other than that, Verlander’s outing was characterized by his ability to grind through uncharacteristic early command woes (a season-high four walks) and several instances in which the Phillies were one swing away from prolonging his bizarre World Series struggles.
Verlander entered with an unsightly 0-6 record and a 6.07 ERA in Fall Classic play — the worst performance for any starting pitcher with as much experience as Verlander has on this stage.
But in the eighth month of his 17th season, the 39-year-old future Hall of Famer with the surgically repaired right elbow shook off the growing narrative about his nightmares, including the 5-0 lead he had squandered in Game 1. Verlander’s slider, which strangely didn’t yield a single swing and miss last Friday at Minute Maid Park, induced a big one to strike out Rhys Hoskins with the bases loaded and two out in the second inning. It was also the pitch Verlander went to in retiring Nick Castellanos on an inning-ending flyout with a runner at second on the final pitch he threw in the game and in an exhausting 10-pitch at-bat.
All told, the Phillies left seven men on base in Verlander’s five effective frames.
The escape act continued in the sixth, when Astros reliever Bryan Abreu replaced Hector Néris with one on and two out, only to plunk Brandon Marsh with the first pitch he threw. Abreu, who had contributed to the combined no-no in Game 4, recovered to retire Schwarber on an inning-ending groundout.
That made the insurance run the Astros manufactured in the top of the eighth feel huge, and indeed it was. In the bottom of the inning, Rafael Montero walked a pair to put two Phillies aboard with one out. Houston manager Dusty Baker summoned Ryan Pressly to attempt his first five-out save of the season, and he struck out Marsh and retired Schwarber on a scorched grounder to first that Trey Mancini played perfectly. Pressly finished the job in the ninth, thanks in no small part to center fielder Chas McCormick’s leaping grab at the fence in right-center to rob J.T. Realmuto of extra bases for the second out.
This was the mystifying means by which the Astros slowly crushed the confidence of a typically intense CBP crowd that had been eager to witness a win in the Phillies’ final home game. Instead, the Astros, who overcame 1-0 and 2-1 deficits in this Series, head home with Framber Valdez on the hill, their first lead in hand and, they hope, more magic to come.