Nats book first trip to World Series
Washington sweep St Louis with 7-4 win
WASHINGTON: The Washington Nationals reached the World Series for the first time in franchise history on Tuesday after completing a 4-0 series sweep over the St Louis Cardinals.
A blistering first inning laid the foundation for a 7-4 victory over a Cardinals team, who rallied in the fifth but were unable to overturn the deficit.
Nats ace Patrick Corbin fanned 12 batters through five innings before finally allowing four runs as the Cardinals attempted to claw their way back into contention.
The Nationals will now play the winners of the American League Championship Series — either the Houston Astros or New York Yankees — in Game One of the World Series next Tuesday.
Houston lead the best-of-seven series 2-1 after winning Game Three at New York 4-1 on Tuesday.
The NL Championship Series victory marked the latest chapter of an improbable season for Washington, who were 19-31 earlier this year with little apparent hope of reaching the play-offs.
Prior to Tuesday’s win, the Nationals were one of only two Major League Baseball teams, along with the Seattle Mariners, who had never reached a World Series.
The Nationals had also carried a miserable postseason record into the play-offs having never won a series before 2019.
“I can’t put this moment into words,” Nationals manager Dave Martinez said.
“Often bumpy roads lead to beautiful places — and this is a beautiful place,” added Martinez, who only last month underwent a heart procedure.
Three convincing wins over St Louis in the opening games of the NLCS had left them on the brink of the World Series, and before an expectant Nationals Park on Tuesday they were in no mood to be denied.
With a sea of red-shirted fans roaring them on, the Nationals raced into a 7-0 lead in a disastrous first inning for the Cardinals.
Cards starting pitcher Dakota Hudson was given a brutal mauling, with Anthony Rendon’s sacrifice fly scoring Trea Turner to start the onslaught.
Juan Soto’s sharp line drive saw Adam Eaton scamper home for 2-0 before a misfield by Cardinals second baseman Kolten Wong loaded the bases.
Another fielding blunder by the Cardinals — Jose Martinez failing to collect a straightforward fly ball from Victor Robles — allowed Soto to score for 3-0.
Yan Gomes’s single then sent Howie Kendrick and Ryan Zimmerman home for 5-0, by which time Cardinals manager Mike Shildt had seen enough, yanking Hudson off the mound for Adam Wainwright.
Wainwright’s arrival did little to staunch the bleeding however, with Turner’s single on a line drive allowing Robles and Gomes to score for a 7-0 lead.
Yadier Molina homered for the Cardinals in the fourth to make it 7-1, before Harrison Bader scored in the fifth.
A Martinez double allowed Wong and Dexter Fowler to score but the Nationals bullpen held firm to close out victory.
In New York, a gritty Gerrit Cole held the Yankees scoreless without his sharpest stuff, Jose Altuve sparked Houston at the plate and the Astros locked down a 4-1 victory to take a 2-1 lead in the AL Championship Series.
Altuve and Josh Reddick homered early off Luis Severino, who laboured into the fifth while keeping the Yankees close.
But they never broke through against Cole, who grinded through seven innings to win his 19th straight decision despite walking five batters for the second time in his career.