Astros facing the unthinkable after Game 2 loss to Nats

HOUSTON – This can’t possibly be happening, can it?

Weren’t the Houston Astros just celebrating on the Minute Maid Park infield a couple of days ago, talking about a potential dynasty?

They were going to cruise to the World Series title, validating themselves as one of the greatest teams in baseball history.

Well, a funny thing happened to history.

The Washington Nationals got in the way and are making their own.

Oh, are they ever.

They utterly embarrassed the Astros on Wednesday night, 12-3, and are now halfway home to the first World Series championship by a Washington, D.C., team since 1924.

They are up 2 games to 0, and are looking every bit like a team that will sweep the World Series.

My God, where did this team come from?

The Nats, who are on the verge of becoming only the second team in history to be 12 games under .500 during the season and win a World Series, have now won eight consecutive postseason games by a combined score of 50-17, and are 18-2 overall since September 23.

The Astros, who had the greatest 1-2 punch in the game during the season with Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole, just watched them both lose backto-back home games for the first time this season.

The Nats have out-played the Astros in every phase of the game, turning a thrilling 2-2 game into a laugher with a sixrun, seventh-inning.

The hero of the night was Stephen Strasburg, who has pitched his heart out this postseason, 4-0 with a 1.93 ERA, and a 40-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio. He was sensational again. He gave up two runs in the first inning on Alex Bregman’s two-run homer, and that was it for the rest of his 114 pitches.

It’s not over, but plans for the parade route circling the nation’s capital are underway.

“We know the series isn’t over,” said Nationals third baseman Anthony Rendon. “I think it would have been a success if we only came in and stole one game, obviously, playing at this stage and playing with the crowd and at their home-field. But for us to obviously steal two games from them at their homefield is great.”

Just once since 1985 has a team lost the first two games at home in a best-of-seven series and won the series, the last being the 1996 New York Yankees over the Atlanta Braves, starting the dynasty.

The Nats will have Anibal Sanchez, who nearly threw a no-hitter in Game 1 of the NLCS against the St. Louis Cardinals, in Game 3 vs Zack Greinke. Advantage Nats.

They will go with 14-game winner Patrick Corbin in Game 4 against the Astros’ bullpen, or possibly Cole on short rest.

Advantage Nats again.

No matter the odds, Nationals manager Dave Martinez is confident in his team.

“I wish I was a betting man, but I’m not,” he said.

“What I believe in is hard work, being consistent in what we do, and sticking to our process, and we did that. I knew that once we got healthy that things would change. We’re here because the boys never gave up.”

(USA Today/TNS)