After a long and tiresome season, the American League-winning Houston Astros will square off against the National League-winning Philadelphia Phillies in the Fall Classic. This battle will not only continue to showcase Rob Thomson’s finest postseason managerial skills, but also serve as the largest stage in baseball this year.
A First Time for Everything
Let’s not kid ourselves here, the Astros pack the most experience between both teams in the postseason having won four AL Pennants and one World Series title from 2017-2022. The Phils have been in rebuilding mode ever since their last postseason berth in 2011. All those days of watching Freddy Galvis misread a ground ball at shortstop or letting out an unamused grunt as Odubel Herrera steps up to the plate are gone. We’re talking about the Phightins here.
This year, Bryce Harper and the Phillies Daycare made it their mission to obtain a postseason spot and the promotion of their new skipper seemed to be the missing piece to the puzzle. Most of the guys haven’t participated in the playoffs and so like them, this matchup is also a first for MLB. The Astros had been participants in the National League since their inaugural season in 1962 and only recently changed leagues in 2013. With that being said, this World Series will be the first to feature a team who has played in both leagues and also represent both leagues in the Fall Classic at least one time.
This also marks the first time Philly and Houston will face each other in the World Series. Love them or hate them, it’s still pretty cool to see the Astros continuing to make their mark on America’s pastime. Except for the cheating scandal. Nothing ruins a sport as quickly as something like that so hope Houston is ready to take on not just the Phils but also the fanbase when they play Game 3 at CBP.
Phillies vs Astros World Series Opener
Game 1 is scheduled for Friday, October 28th in Houston with a time yet to be determined. Probable starters are also a little murky right now but if I had to assume, I’d say Aaron Nola or Zach Wheeler will start for Philly and most likely face off against Justin Verlander. Something to note here is that the Astros latest lost against Philly was back on October 3rd…when Nola pitched seven strong innings and led the team to a 3-0 shutout victory.
Could history repeat itself Friday night if he were to take the mound? Possibly. Regardless, this meeting will be one of the finest examples of rookies going against the veterans. All the surprises with this team in 2022 have shown most of us that they shouldn’t be counted out just yet even with the odds against them. I look forward to watching the Phightins bring it to the Astros in hopes of being crowned World Series Champions.
AP Photo/Matt Rourke
