BREGMAN’S RBI WINS IT
Astros survive as his 10th-inning hit ends slugfest
HOUSTON — Blast off! Jose Altuve, Carlos Correa and the Houston Astros kept hammering away in a wild slugfest that no one saw coming, rallying against Clayton Kershaw and rocking the Los Angeles Dodgers 13-12 in 10 thrilling innings Sunday night for a 3-2 lead in the World Series.
In a tension-filled game of monster momentum swings at pulsating Minute Maid Park, the last one belonged to Albuquerque’s Alex Bregman. With the packed crowd still standing well past midnight, Bregman hit an RBI single with two outs off Kenley Jansen to win it after 5 hours, 17 minutes.
Wacky and whacky with seven home runs, this perhaps topped Toronto’s 15-14 win over the Phillies in 1993 as the craziest World Series game ever.
Altuve, Correa, Yuli Gurriel, George Springer and Brian McCann homered for Houston. Cody Bellinger and Yasiel Puig went deep for the Dodgers, who scored three times in the ninth to make it 12-12.
Silent when ace Dallas Keuchel got crushed, the orange-clad fans erupted over and over as the Astros sent balls careening all around — and out of — the park.
Yet on another night of Home Run Derby in the Year of the Home Run, no lead was safe.
Puig lined a two-run shot in the ninth, the record 22nd homer in a single Series, and Chris Taylor’s two-out single off Chris Devenski tied it.
Now, with both bullpens worn down, the teams get a day to recover. It’ll be Game 6 on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium, where Justin Verlander will try to clinch
the Astros’ first championship and Rich Hill hopes to save Los Angeles’ season.
Out of nowhere, the Astros climbed out of a four-run hole against Kershaw and then erased two more deficits later in the game, tying it each time on a homer.
Correa leaped and twirled after launching a two-run drive made it 11-8 in the seventh. McCann’s shot in the eighth added a much-needed insurance run.
Bellinger homered for Los Angeles, a three-run drive in the fifth that made it 7-4 and seemed to swing things back in the Dodgers’ favor. By the end of the mayhem on the mound, it was a mere afterthought.
The Astros (13) and Dodgers (9) topped the Series mark for homers, set when Barry Bonds and the Giants lost to the Angels in seven games in 2002. But really, who imagined this? No wonder there’s a bright sign high above the center field wall for a popular taco place in town — it says Torchy and fit perfectly for a game where pitchers got lit up.
A day earlier, Kershaw stood alone on the mound after the Dodgers’ dramatic win in Game 4, trying to get a visual for the biggest start of his career.
The three-time NL Cy Young Award winner cruised into the fourth with a 4-0 lead before things suddenly fell apart. After Correa hit an RBI double, Gurriel hit a tying, three-run drive.
Kershaw whipped his head around to watch Gurriel’s drive sail, his face immediately showing shock, utter disbelief and frustration, all wrapped up in one expression before he bent over, hands on his knees.