The second came for Nationals third baseman Anthony Rendon. The Houston native went to Lamar High School, about a 15-minute drive from here, and will be a free agent this offseason.
How to watch
Game 1: Washington Nationals at Houston Astros
Where: Minute Maid Park in Houston
Roster analysis
The Nationals officially announced their 25-man World Series roster Tuesday afternoon:
Starters (four): Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg, Patrick Corbin, Aníbal Sánchez
Relievers (seven): Daniel Hudson, Sean Doolittle, Tanner Rainey, Fernando Rodney, Wander Suero, Joe Ross, Javy Guerra
Catchers (two): Yan Gomes, Kurt Suzuki
Infielders (seven): Ryan Zimmerman, Howie Kendrick, Matt Adams, Asdrúbal Cabrera, Brian Dozier, Trea Turner, Anthony Rendon
Outfielders (five): Juan Soto, Victor Robles, Adam Eaton, Gerardo Parra, Michael A. Taylor
The only two changes from the National League Championship Series are the additions of relievers Wander Suero and Joe Ross. The Nationals dropped relievers Austin Voth and Roenis Elías, neither of whom has pitched this postseason, to make room.
The back-of-the-bullpen shuffling likely won’t matter unless one game becomes an Astros blowout. The Nationals have shown throughout the postseason, including in an NLCS Game 3 win over the St. Louis Cardinals, they’ll still use their best relievers when leading large (in that case, 8-1). If the games are close, expect what we’ve seen throughout this postseason — 25 of the team’s 28 relief appearances have been made by Rodney, Rainey, Hudson, Doolittle or a starter.
Suero makes sense because Manager Dave Martinez relied on the 28-year-old right-hander all season. He made a team-high 78 appearances. Ross could serve as a pinch-runner if need be and, for that reason, expect Guerra to get the first crack at any long relief situations.
Preview
The Washington Nationals will face the Houston Astros in Game 1 of the World Series on Tuesday night, but the main story line no longer appears to be the Nationals’ first trip there, or one of the best pitching matchups in recent history between Max Scherzer and Gerrit Cole. The biggest story broke on Monday night, when reports surfaced of an Astros front office member yelling at three female reporters during a clubhouse celebration on Saturday night. Assistant general manager Brandon Taubman reportedly screamed that he was glad the Astros last season acquired closer Roberto Osuna, who was suspended early in 2018 for violating MLB’s policy on domestic assault.
The pitching matchup offers a study in similarities. Scherzer against Cole pits two of the best, hard-throwing aces in the league. They have nearly the same repertoires, four-seam fastballs roughly half the time, a slider to complement it. Scherzer’s third pitch is his change-up, and Cole’s is his curveball, but they both throw it about 15 percent of the time — and they exchange fourth pitches (curveball for Scherzer, change-up for Cole) at almost the same rate too (roughly 8 percent).
Lineups
Series overview
- Game 1 at Houston — Tuesday, Oct. 22, 8:08 p.m.
- Game 2 at Houston — Wednesday, Oct. 23, 8:07 p.m.
- Game 3 at Washington — Friday, Oct. 25, 8:07 p.m.
- Game 4 at Washington — Saturday, Oct. 26, 8:07 p.m.
- Game 5 at Washington — Sunday, Oct. 27, 8:07 p.m. (if necessary)
- Game 6 at Houston — Tuesday, Oct. 29, 8:07 p.m. (if necessary)
- Game 7 at Houston — Wednesday, Oct. 30, 8:08 p.m. (if necessary)
Pregame reading
And the beat goes on. Four writers covered the Nationals from their inaugural season in Washington in 2005 through the 2018 campaign. Here are their stories. (Read more)
Read more on the World Series:
