Nationals Win Their First World Series With One Last Rally

They also relied on key position players like Anthony Rendon, the Houston native who opened the Nationals’ scoring with his seventh-inning home run off an otherwise exceptional Zack Greinke; Juan Soto, who turned 21 on Friday and hit three home runs during the Series; and 36-year-old Howie Kendrick, whose two-run homer off Will Harris in the seventh inning wiped away a 2-1 Houston advantage and gave the Nationals the lead for good.

“It’s tough enough to win in this league,” said Mike Rizzo, the Washington general manager who built this roster. “But to win the world championship, your stars have got to be stars, and our stars were stars in these playoffs.”

Patrick Corbin, a starting pitcher who was acquired in the off-season via free agency, was thrust into a relief role and threw three scoreless innings before Nationals Manager Dave Martinez handed the ball to Daniel Hudson for the final three outs.

Hudson completed the Nationals’ remarkable story line when he struck out Michael Brantley for the final out. Catcher Yan Gomes punched the air and tossed his face mask aside to commemorate the moment, and the rest of the Nationals players poured out of the dugout and the bullpen.

Most of the orange-clad spectators at the park watched in silence as the team with the oldest regular-season roster celebrated in on the infield grass in front of them.

“There’s a bunch of guys over 30 years old,” said the 33-year-old reliever Sean Doolittle. “And according to the smartest people in the room, you can’t win games like that any more. You need young, athletic, controllable talent. We’re really proud that we’re the oldest team in baseball that just won the World Series. Let the viejos play, baby.”

The Nationals have carried a reputation as a team that relies on more traditional methods of player development, scouting and on-field tactics, though they have modernized their approach in recent years. The Astros, in contrast, have long been at the forefront of the analytics revolution in baseball, using a data-driven approach to a powerhouse.

Source: The New York Times

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