World Series Matchup
What may have seemed like one of the most unlikely World Series matchups just a month ago, may actually be the best matchup anybody could’ve asked for. The Houston Astros were baseball’s best team all season long and frankly would’ve been viewed as a failure if they didn’t reach the Fall Classic. The Washington Nationals, however, took a little extra work to get here. They scratched and fought for a Wild Card spot, took down the Milwaukee Brewers in the eighth inning of the win-or-go-home game, dethroned the reigning National League Champions, and waltzed past the gritty St. Louis Cardinals to make it here.
Although the two sides had very different paths to get here, this looks like it is the evenest matchup baseball fans could’ve conjured up. Two of the most high-powered starting rotations in baseball will be the main storyline heading into the series, but the Washington offense may be able to quietly match Houston’s star-studded lineup.
The Astros enter the series as heavy favorites, but the discrepancy may not be as big as it appears. Houston is the more talented roster, but Washington has been statistically better over their playoff run. Heading into game one, let’s see which team has had the edge in the position battles throughout October.
Starting Pitching
The starting pitching between these two sides may be the toughest to decipher. Either side could be given the edge here, but when it comes to this October, the scale tips slightly in Washington’s favor. Although Gerrit Cole has been the best pitcher on the planet since May, the Nationals seemingly have more depth in their rotation. After the first two games of Cole, and Justin Verlander versus Max Scherzer, and Stephen Strasburg is where the Nationals find their edge. Zack Greinke has struggled these playoffs, while Patrick Corbin hasn’t been otherworldly this month, he has been better than Greinke. Washington also has Anibal Sanchez who took a no-hitter into the eighth inning of Game One in the NLCS.
Edge: Washington Nationals
Bullpen
Neither side has a shut-down bullpen, the Nationals, however, will gain the edge here as well. Washington’s bullpen has gotten hot at just the right time while Houston’s relief has still struggled at times amidst their playoff run. What really gives Washington the edge here is their starting pitching depth. This is exactly what the Boston Red Sox did last season; the bullpen got hot at the right time, and Alex Cora relied on his starters out of the bullpen all month long.
Edge: Washington Nationals
Catcher
Both teams use a platoon catcher system, the unit of Yan Gomes and Kurt Suzuki has been pretty much even with Martin Maldonado and Robinson Chirinos. Gomes has hit .308 in six games. Suzuki has only hit .050, but Houston’s catchers have almost identical numbers. Maldonado has hit a similar .308, and Chirinos is hitting .090. The Astros have a slight edge in terms of hits and strikeouts, giving them the advantage at catcher.
Edge: Houston Astros
First Base
Yuli Gurriel has the edge when it comes to regular-season production, but Ryan Zimmerman has been the better player in these playoffs. Gurriel only has an OPS of .541 while Zimmerman’s sits at .796. The long layoff could play a role in Zimmerman’s production, which is an interesting factor in this series. It’s been well documented that better talent may not be the most reliable in October; it’s all about getting hot at the right time. Zimmerman is the better player right now, so the edge goes to Washington here.
Edge: Washington Nationals
Second Base
Jose Altuve has been one of the most elite players in the last five seasons, and nothing has changed this October. Although Howie Kendrick has been on fire, Altuve has been unstoppable this postseason. Altuve capped off his play to this point with a walk-off homer to send his team to the World Series. The second baseman is hitting .349/.417/.767 over the last few weeks.
Edge: Houston Astros
Third Base
Just as the starting pitching has the matchup of possible Cy Young Award finalists, the third basemen will likely be MVP finalists in their respective leagues. Alex Bregman may have been better throughout the season but has cooled off since then. Anthony Rendon comes out on top here. He’s supplemented his MVP campaign by hitting .375/.465/.594 in the playoffs.
Edge: Washington Nationals
Shortstop
Yet another matchup between young stars comes with Trey Turner and Carlos Correa, and once again, the nod goes to the Nationals. Although Correa has a walk-off home run under his belt during this run, he’s still batting below .200 with 18 strikeouts. Turner’s average sits up closer to .300 and has struck out less than half the times that Correa has.
Edge: Washington Nationals
Left Field
Juan Soto‘s heroics in the Wild Card game earned him a lot of the spotlight but since then has kind of disappeared. Soto is hitting a measly .237 during the team’s run. While Michael Brantley hasn’t been hitting the cover off the ball, has has been better than Soto has. Brantley is slashing .262/.340/.333 this month.
Edge: Houston Astros
Center Field
Michael Taylor saw some time when Victor Robles was sidelined with an injury, but it appears that Robles will be their guy moving forward. Since returning from injury Robles has an OPS of .915. George Springer hasn’t seen the same success this month. One of the games more elite power hitters only has two home runs and is batting .152.
Edge: Washington Nationals
Right Field
Right field has been a weak spot for both sides, but Josh Reddick has been even worse than Adam Eaton. Eaton has hit .194 with a couple of doubles over their postseason run, while Reddick has only hit .134.
Edge: Washington Nationals
World Series Prediction
The Washington Nationals have been the hotter team in October, and often times that’s what decides the winner. It doesn’t look like there’s a team on the planet that could beat Washington right now and that’s why they shouldn’t be counted out. Granted, the Astros were the best team in all of baseball in 2019, it’s just hard to bet against this Cinderella story right now.
