HOUSTON — Being in person for World Series games is such an exhilarating event. It’s something I wish every single baseball fan could experience at least once in their lifetime. The electricity when the home team takes the field in the first inning still gives me chills and I’ve been to every World Series game from 2011 (except the 2020 series). That’s how amazing it is.
And yet, we’re on a really tough run right now. After the 2019 World Series, which was amazing, anytime someone asked me about the series, I said the one negative was that it was sort of depressing to see the home fans go home disappointed every single freaking game. Remember? The road team won all seven games, including the Nationals taking the decisive Game 7 at Minute Maid Park. As much as I enjoy baseball fans, it was so tough to see so many streaming out of games so angry after spending all that money and being so excited at the start of the game.
And in fact, a team playing in its home ballpark hasn’t won a World Series game since Game 3 in 2018. All the games in 2020 were in a neutral park and actual home teams have lost the last 10 World Series games.
It happened again in Game 1 of the 2021 World Series, a 6-2 Braves victory. And it wasn’t just the loss. The Braves ripped out the hearts of every Astros fan in attendance and stomped on them for the first three innings.
For the first time in World Series history, the leadoff batter homered in the top of the first. It was Jorge Soler who gave Astros starter Framber Valdez and the thousands of Astros fans in attendance the rude awakening.
And then it was 5-0 Braves through three innings. The Braves became the first team in World Series history to score in each of the first three innings of Game 1.
And I just kept thinking about all the fans. The overwhelming majority of them paid nearly four figures — many more than a thousand dollars — to attend the game. Many hung around the ballpark hours before the first pitch, incredibly hyped to watch their favorite team and then, boom, a historic start by the opposing offense.
That is now five straight home games lost by the Astros in the World Series. The last time they won here in the World Series? The most amazing and ridiculous game I’ve ever witnessed: 2017 Game 5.
Now, the Astros will still be in fine shape in the series if they can just snap this Fall Classic home losing streak and take Game 2 to even things up.
Of course, it’s going to be a tall order. Lefty Max Fried gets the ball for the Braves. They won 10 of his last 11 regular season starts and he had a 1.46 ERA in them. He was very good in his first two postseason starts. The Dodgers crushed him in Game 5, but it was their second look at him in less than a week. No Astros regulars have ever faced him at the MLB level and that’s generally advantage pitcher.
The Astros are starting José Urquidy. His last postseason start — his only one so far in 2021 — he was shelled in Game 3 in Boston, to the tune of six runs in just 1 2/3 innings. Further complicating matters for Dusty Baker’s troops is the bad Valdez start in Game 1 meant using a bunch of the bullpen to finish this thing.
Of course, one of the many great things about baseball is teams don’t have long to sit around licking their wounds. They get to play again Wednesday night after the disappointing outcome on Tuesday. And the Astros absolutely have the offensive firepower to take down Fried. The Braves had to use a lot of bullpen on their end, too.
Astros manager Dusty Baker noted his team’s resilience after the Game 1 loss.
“This team is excellent at forgetting yesterday if you have negative events like we did today,” Baker said. “I mean, you go in our clubhouse, I’ve never seen these guys worry. They know they can play, and they know they’re going to rebound.”
Will 2021 World Series Game 2 finally be it? Will the home fans finally go home happy? We’ll see you Wednesday night and find out, Houston.
