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Gerrit Cole dominated through seven innings of work—with a Juan Soto solo shot as the only blemish—and the Houston Astros are now one win away from clinching their second World Series title in the last three years. Cole went seven one-run innings, punching out nine and walking just two batters while three different Astros all went yard in the 7-1 victory. The story before the game was Max Scherzer and neck spasms. The Washington Nationals’ ace was scratched prior to Game Five and his replacement Joe Ross only went five innings and allowed four runs in taking the loss.
Yuli Gurriel, Carlos Correa, and George Springer all launched bombs to the dismay of the Nationals fans who—just like the Astros fans in Games One and Two—did not see their squad win a single game in their home portion of the World Series. Now the Nationals hope the trend continues as the series returns to Houston for a possible Game Six clincher. They will need more from their lineup and starting pitching as the Nationals managed just one run in each of their games at home after clubbing the Astros 12-3 in Game Two to take a short-lived 2-0 series lead.
World Series Game Six: Justin Verlander Against a Big Question Mark
We know who will start Game Six in Houston for the Astros; Justin Verlander. We do not yet know who will toe the slab for the Nationals while trying to stave off elimination, and that just means more questions, all of them as big as Scherzer himself: Will Scherzer’s neck spasms recede enough to allow him to start? Will it even be worth rolling the dice on the intense right hander or is the smart play to turn the ball over to Stephen Strasburg? Does this turn of bad luck for the Nationals actually give them an advantage in a possible Game Seven? Questions, questions, and more questions.
This was supposed to be a World Series chock-full of epic pitching battles with old-fashioned starters mercilessly mowing down batter after batter. However, the buildup has led to a bit of a letdown as through five games we have yet to see a true pitchers duel, with Game One being the closest thing to a dream scenario. So, the question remains; will we finally see one in Game Six?
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World Series Game Six Odds and World Series Odds
The sportsbooks are in agreement; the Houston Astros odds for Game Six of the World Series place them as the clear favorites (-180). The Washington Nationals are the underdogs once again and have a favorable moneyline bet of +160. Just like in Game Five, the over/under for Game Six of the World Series is at 7.5 at most places, and over bettors all cheered yet another World Series George Springer dinger when he cranked a two-run shot in the top of the ninth to make the game go over.
With the Astros as favorites in Game Six, it should come as no surprise a wager on the Astros to straight up win the series will not pay too much (Astros -900). However, placing some money on the Nationals to win the World Series will pay off big if it comes through, as the Nationals odds to win the World Series are currently +550. Considering Strasburg outdueled Verlander in Game Two and is in one of the best grooves of his career while Verlander is tiring a bit of late, Game Six of the World Series offers some of the most intriguing baseball bets of the year. And if the Nationals pull off the Game Six upset and force a deciding Game Seven… we will all be asking the most important question of all; who is going to win the World Series?
