Oct. 29 (UPI) — Veteran catcher J.T. Realmuto hit an opposite-field, 346-foot home run to lead the Philadelphia Phillies to a 6-5 comeback victory over the Houston Astros in Game 1 of the World Series on Friday in Houston.
Realmuto went 2 for 4 with three RBIs, a run scored and a walk. Phillies third baseman Alec Bohm also drove in two runs. The Phillies trailed by five runs before they mounted their extra-innings victory
“It was incredible,” Phillies outfielder Nick Castellanos told Fox. “It was a perfect game for the series.
“We were hit in the mouth, down five, and we faced adversity. We did what we always do.”
Right fielder Kyle Tucker put the Astros ahead 1-0 with a 359-foot homer off Phillies starter Aaron Nola in the bottom of the second. Catcher Martin Maldonado hit an RBI single in the same inning for a two-run edge.
Tucker pushed the lead to five runs with a 395-foot, three-run blast to right field in the third.
Astros starter Justin Verlander retired 10-consecutive hitters to help his team carry the large lead into the fourth. The Phillies then started their rally and never looked back.
First baseman Rhys Hoskins singled to center in the second at-bat of the fourth. Designated hitter Bryce Harper singled to right two at-bats later. Castellanos followed with an RBI single to left for the Phillies’ first run.
Bohm then plated Harper and Castellanos, when he hit the next pitch to left field for an RBI double, which cut the deficit to two.
Phillies center fielder Brandon Marsh doubled off Verlander on the first pitch of the fifth. Verlander then issued a walk to left fielder Kyle Schwarber.
Realmuto hit a double off the left field wall two at-bats later. That hit plated Marsh and Schwarber and tied the game.
The Phillies loaded the bases in the seventh against Astros relief pitcher Bryan Abreu, but stranded the runners to keep the score tied. Neither team scored in the eighth or ninth inning, which sent the game into the 10th.
Realmuto stepped up to the plate to lead off the final inning. He fell behind 1-2 in the count against Astros reliever Luis Garcia.
The right-handed pitcher missed the strike zone with his next two offerings. Realmuto sent his final heave — a fastball thrown wide of the zone — into the seats just above the right field wall.
Phillies relief pitcher David Robertson struck out outfielder Yordan Alvarez to start the bottom of the 10th. Third baseman Alex Bregman followed with a double to left. Robertson struck out Tucker in the next exchange.
He issued another walk to infielder Yuli Gurriel in the fourth at-bat of the inning. Robertson threw a wild pitch during his final exchange with Aledmys Diaz, which allowed Bregman to move to third base.
He then struck out the Astros pinch hitter to end the drama and secure a win in the opener of the best-of-seven game series.
Nola allowed six hits and five runs in 4 1/3 innings. The Phillies bullpen kept the Astros scoreless over the final 5 2/3 innings.
Robertson and fellow relievers Jose Alvarado, Zach Eflin, Ranger Suarez and Seranthony DomÃnguez combined to allow just four hits down the stretch.
Harper went 2 for 4 with a run scored and a walk for the Phillies. Tucker went 3 for 5 with four RBIs and two runs scored in the loss. Verlander allowed six hits and five runs over five innings.
Game 2 will be at 8:03 p.m. EDT Saturday in Houston. It will air on Fox.
