Adolis Garcia on Monday homered twice and drove in five runs as the Texas Rangers reached their first World Series in 12 years with an 11-4 blowout of the Houston Astros in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series (ALCS), while the Arizona Diamondbacks forced a Game 7 with a 5-1 win over the Philadelphia Phillies.
Corey Seager got the Rangers started with a long homer in a three-run first inning. Nathaniel Lowe also went deep to give Texas — one of six major league teams without a World Series title — its first berth in the Fall Classic since consecutive trips in 2010 and 2011.
Garcia homered for the fourth straight game and set a record for RBIs in a post-season series with 15. He had four hits, scored three times and was the obvious choice for ALCS Most Valuable Player in a series in which the road team won every game.
Photo: AFP
“He’s a bad man, isn’t he?” Seager said. “To be able to come into this atmosphere and get booed every at-bat and do what he did was really special. It was really fun to watch.”
After winning their Lone Star State showdown with rival Houston, the resilient Rangers open an all-wild card World Series at home on Friday night against the Diamondbacks or the Phillies, who were yesterday to play their decisive game of their National League Championship Series (NLCS).
Bruce Bochy, who came out of retirement this season to manage the Rangers, became the first skipper to win a league championship series with three different teams, after leading the San Diego Padres and San Francisco Giants to National League pennants.
Photo: AFP
He and general manager Chris Young have spearheaded a swift turnaround with Texas, making its first playoff appearance since 2016 after losing 102 games in 2021 and going 68-94 last year.
“I didn’t know if I’d get back in it, and here I am. I know how blessed I am,” Bochy said. “We’ve had our streaks. We’ve had our injuries. They keep getting up. To come in here and beat such a great team like Houston — and congrats on their year, but it’s great to be wearing the horns in Texas.”
Meanwhile, the defending World Series champion Astros were finally dethroned.
Fittingly, it came at home, where they went 40-47 this year and 0-4 in this series. They won all three games at Texas and returned to Minute Maid Park a win shy of their third straight pennant, but Houston’s pitching staff got pounded for 20 runs in the final two games of the team’s seventh consecutive ALCS.
“That finished our season — not being able to win at home,” said outfielder Chas McCormick, who sat stone-faced in the dugout long after the last out. “That came and bit us.”
No club has repeated as World Series champion since the New York Yankees won three straight from 1998-2000.
“I don’t like tipping my cap to anybody,” Astros manager Dusty Baker said. “But when someone beats the hell out of you, what are you going to do?
“We have been spoiled around here as far as winning and winning and winning, and heck, I’ve been here four years, and we’ve been to two World Series and two Championship Series. We have nothing to be ashamed of or nothing to hold our head down about. We’re down, but we’re not out. And every team in baseball would trade to have had the last four years that we’ve had.”
In Philadelphia, Merrill Kelly retired Kyle Schwarber, Trea Turner and Bryce Harper in order in the fifth inning, striking out Schwarber and Harper — October’s biggest home run threats.
When the pitcher reached the dugout, manager Torey Lovullo offered a handshake to signal the start was over after 90 pitches. Kelly appeared agitated and gestured with his glove as if to point out he struck out Schwarber and Harper and had much more in the tank.
“It kind of just, I think, took me by shock more than anything,” Kelly said.
Here might be the real shock — especially in Philly: After losing the first two games of the NLCS, the Diamondbacks are one win from their first World Series since 2001.
Tommy Pham and Lourdes Gurriel Jr hit back-to-back homers and Kelly struck out eight before his early hook to help Arizona force Game 7.
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