Astros vs. Braves commentary, scores, stats and updates: World Series Game 3
Astros vs. Braves: World Series Game 3
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Ian Anderson threw five no-hit innings and the Braves pitching was outstanding. For the most part, they shut down one of the most potent offenses in baseball. The weather was surely a factor, with a cold, blustery, wet night throwing off pitchers and hitters alike on both sides.
Tucker sends one out to the warnign track in center and Heredia brings it down to end the game. The Braves win!
Travis d'Arnaud blocks one in the dirt. Great way to be big back there.
Kyle Tucker comes up swinging and it is 0-1
Carlos Correa floats one out to right for Duvall and the Braves are now one out away from putting this away.
Yordan Alvarez pops the first pitch up to third and Riley puts it away for the first out.
Alex Bregman pokes one through the right side for a single and Houston start off the ninth with a base runner.
The Braves have brought on a defensive change with Guillermo Heredia in center, bumping Duvall to right and Soler out of the game. Closer Will Smith will come on to the mound to try and slam the door on this one.
Dansby Swanson goes down swinging to end the inning. But their catcher has given them a bit of insurance room going into the ninth. Atlanta lead 2-0
Travis d'Arnaud takes the first pitch to the deepest part of the park for a solo shot!
Adam Duvall gets three fastballs and goes down swinging for out number two.
Soler slaps one to Correa and the long throw to first gets the out.
Kendall Graveman will take the mound for Houston and will face Jorge Soler to lead off.
He pops one up behind third and Austin Riley hauls it in to get the Braves out of a jam. We are in the middle of the eighth 1-0 Braves.
Matzek cranks up the heat and throws two 99mph strikes to Michael Brantley.
Siri takes off and d'Arnaud's throw gets into the outfield, Siri takes third as well.
The second pitch is popped up and Austin Riley takes it for the second out.
Jose Altuve comes up and he loves the first pitch. Matek throws him a breaking ball and he fouls it off.
Three fastballs follow those up and Castro goes down swinging for the first out.
Jason Castro at the plate and takes two balls.
Houston will replace Diaz with a pinch runner in the shape of Jose Siri.
Diaz hits a high pop to shallow left and it falls in just at the feet of Eddie Rosario. That is the first hit of the game for Houston.
Tyler Matzek takes the mound for Atlanta and will face pinch hitter Aledmys Diaz.
Austin Riley will face Stanek and he goes down swinging to end the inning. We move to eight with the score still 1-0 to Atlanta.
Dusty Baker goes out to the mound and takes the ball from Raley. Ryne Stanek will get the nod for Houston.
Switch hitter Albies now working from the right side hits one on a line and Correa nabs it for the second out.
Freddie Freeman will lead off the bottom of the seventh with a ground ball to Correa for the putout at first.
Yuli Gurriel comes to the plate and he hits a shot to third. Riley throws a two hopper to first that is in time! Middle of seven and the Astros are still hitless.
He swings at the sinker delivery and sends it to Adam Duvall in center field for out number two.
Kyle Tucker will take the box and gets the count to 2-1
Correa hits one to Albies and the throw to first gets the out.
Luke Jackson will be called upon by the Braves to face Carlos Correa in the seventh.
Rosario reaches for one and pops it to shallow center. Kyle Tucker charges it and makes an amazing diving catch for the final out of the inning.
He will face the top of the Braves lineup and Rosario steps in with two outs.
That will be the end of the evening for Yimi Garcia and the Astros will bring on a new pitcher, Brooks Raley.
Adrianza hits a ground ball to Altuve who makes the throw to first for the second out.
Ehire Adrianza will pinch hit so it will only be the one inning for Minter.
He skies one to left field and Alvarez makes the nab for the first out.
Bottom of the sixth and Yimi Garcia faces Dansby Swanson.
Minter throws some low cheese and Alvarez whiffs it! We move to the bottom of the sixth and the Braves still lead 1-0.
Yordan Alvarez comes up to the plate.
It came off of his left ankle and on a cold damp night that has to hurt.
Alex Bregman is hit by the pitch and is down.
He grounds one to Freddie Freeman at first and he steps on the bag for out number two.
He swings at the next pitch and is quickly 0-2 down
MIchael Brantley comes to the plate and gets a called strike that he is not happy about at all.
Great changeup from Minter and Altuve goes down swinging for out number one.
Jose Altuve will lead it off for Houston.
AJ Minter, who had a spectacular Game 1, is on to take over the relief pitching for Atlanta.
He battles back and gets the count to 2-2 and the delivery from Garcia is on the outside corner. D'Arnaud pokes it to Gurriel at first for the final out.
Travis d'Arnaud comes to the plate and gets behind 0-2
He slaps one up the middle, fielded by Altuve but he can't make the tough throw to first. Infield hit for Duvall. Men on first and second now with two outs.
Adam Duvall to see if he can make amends for the strikeout with the bases loaded in the third.
Jorge Soler gets a base on four balls. Man on first with two outs now.
Austin Riley slaps one straight to first base and Gurriel fields it and tags the bag for out number two.
Houston brings on Yimi Garcia to face Ozzie Albies and he swings first pitch and grounds out to first base.
Marwin Gonzales pinch hits and the rain is coming down harder now.
Martín Maldonado hits one on a rope and Ozzie Albies is right there and nabs it for out number two.
Gurriel knocks one into right center and it is hauled in by Jorge Soler.
The top of the fifth and Anderson will face Yuli Gurriel to lead off.
He doesn't and Freeman chases a fastball outside for strike three.
Freeman gets the first two called strikes. Rosario may take off now.
Rosario slaps one into left and gets the two out single.
That will be the end of Luis Garcia's work tonight and Dusty Baker will summon Blake Taylor to face Eddie Rosario.
Ian Anderson swings at the first pitch and lines it to first base for the second out.
Georgia native Dansby Swanson will lead off the Braves part of the inning and pops the first pitch behind the plate. Martín Maldonado tracks it down and we have one away.
Tucker hits a dribbler back to Anderson. The throw to first is in time to end the inning.
Tucker will come up with two base runners on and two out.
Alvarez will be running on the pitch and Correa is hit by the pitch.
Correa now has a 3-1 count and the delivery from Anderson is a beauty. Called strike to fill the count.
It seems to have done some good as the next pitch is a called strike.
Carlos Correa comes up and gets the first two pitches as balls. D'Arnaud goes out to the mound to have a chat with his pitcher.
How the game can continue in this rain is beyond me. I would think that they would need to come off the field if this keeps up.
Four straight balls and Alvarez is on first with a walk.
Yordan Alvarez steps in and you can really see the rain streaking down now.
He works the count full before flying out to center field for the second out.
Bregman comes up and takes a ball.
Anderson is throwing really well and he gets Brantley to chase a low changeup for strike three.
Leading off the fourth inning will be Michael Brantley.
He chases a terrible breaking ball and the Astros get out of a dangerous spot. The end of three and the Braves are up by one.
Travis d'Arnaud will see if he can move some of the baserunners around the paths.
Duvall pops one up in front of the Houston dugout and Gurriel puts it away for the second out. That was huge.
Adam Duvall will stand in now with the bases full and one out.
Brent Strom strolls out to the mound to slow things down. Yimi Garcia is loosening up in the Astros bullpen.
The payoff is low and Soler draws the walk to load the bases.
That misty rain is now back and Garcia throws a strike to bring the count to 3-2. Soler didn't like it but it was a great pitch.
Jorge Soler comes up to the plate now with one out and two men in scoring position.
Riley shoots one down the third base line into the outfield for a double! Rosario scores and Freeman will pull up at third base. The Braves are the first on the board.
Austin Riley comes to the plate now.
Albies hangs tough and fouls a few off before whiffing a low changeup for the first out of the inning.
A dangerous batter in Ozzie Albies comes to the plate.
Freeman slaps a low slider into left field for a single. Rosario will hold up at second. We now have two men on and nobody out.
Freddie Freeman comes to the plate.
Rosario gets the full count and checks his swing. This time they do appeal to the third base umpire and he did not go around. He gets the base on balls.
Garcia's fastball is missing all over the place. You have to wonder if he is having trouble feeling the seams on the ball.
The bottom of the third will see the top of the Atlanta order come to the plate, Eddie Rosario leading off.
The count runs full and the delivery is high, but he gets Altuve to chase for strike three. Anderson retires the side in order.
This is definitely the way Anderson would like to face Altuve. A couple outs and nobody on.
Jose Altuve comes to the plate now with two outs.
Pitcher Luis Garcia swings at the first pitch and Ozzie Albies fields it and makes the throw to first for out number two.
Maldonado grounds out to third for the first out of the third inning.
He goes down on a swinging cut at a low pitch. The intentional walk works out for Garcia and the second inning ends with no score in Atlanta.
The next three pitches will almost certainly be breaking balls.
Ian Anderson comes to the plate and goes for it to get two quick strikes.
Dansby Swanson is intentionally walked so that Garcia can face the pitcher with two outs.
Catcher Travis d'Arnaud comes up and gets the full count. The payoff pitch is shot off the wall in right and d'Arnaud is into second with a two out double.
Adam Duvall stands in and chops one to third. Bregman fields it cleanly and makes the throw to first for the second out.
Some of the misty rain has now stopped, so we will see how that changes the pitching
Soler gets called out on a check swing that he couldn't stop.
Garcia does his best work against right handers and he now has four in a row coming up.
The Braves batting will start with Jorge Soler.
As young children, they allowed us ten players on the field and there was a position called short field - basically a fourth outfielder. That is pretty much how the Braves use Riley in that shift.
Yuli Gurriel is wiffed on three fastballs to end the inning.
Next up will be Kyle Tucker and he works the count full before slapping one to right field. It is taken in by Austin Riley, the third baseman. Talk about an extreme shift.
Carlos Correa will lead off the second for Houston and he flies out to Soler in right field.
He blows a fastball by him for a strikeout to end the inning. We move to the second inning with no score in Atlanta.
Albies will be moving on this pitch.
Garcia works his way back in and gets the count full.
The cold and damp is obviously affecting Garcia's control and he misses the first three for balls. Riley will definely have the green light
The first pitch misses and Maldonado runs out to have a word with his pitcher.
Austin Riley steps in to face Garcia with a man on and two outs.
Yet another full count for Albies and the 3-2 delivery is outside and Albies takes the walk.
WIth two outs now, Albies comes up. A switch hitter, he goes from the lefft side of the plate against the right handed pitcher Garcia.
Freddie Freemand swings first pitch and flies out to left.
The count is full to Rosario and the delivery is low but he rung up by the home plate umpire on the check swing. He definitely didn't go around but there is nothing that can be done now. One out.
Garcia has the most unusual delivery from the windup. He dances forward, back, foreward, back and then go.
Rosario gets away with one, hitting a high foul ball beihind third, falling exactly where nobody could get to it.
Luis Garcia delivers the first pitch for the Astros to leadoff hitter Eddie Rosario.
Yordan Alvarez who is the hottest Astro bat at the moment comes to the plate. He swings first pitch and pops it to left field where Eddie Rosario puts it away to end the inning.
Bregman gets the count to full and the 3-2 pitch is in the dirt. Anderson gives up his second walk of the inning.
Alex Bregman comes to the plate now. It is perhaps surprising that Anderson can find the strike zone at all given the mist and wet conditions. You can see the frost on their breath as well. It can't be easy to pitch in these conditions.
Michael Brantley takes a first pitch strike. The Astros have a runner on first with nobody out and Brantley is just the man to have at the plate in this type of situation.
The payoff delivery misses low and Altuve reaches on balls.
Ian Anderson misses the first three pitches before throwing a pair of strikes to Jose Altuve.
Atlanta has a pretty misty forecast so we will see how much the weather affects the play.
The Braves take the field and we are just about ready for the first pitch.
The Braves are retiring number 44 after this season in honor of Hank Aaron and there is a ceremony pre-game where Hank's widow Billye and their children receive a standing ovation. Hank Jr throws out the ceremonial first pitch.
The Starting Lineups
The Home Team
Braves Batting Order
Eddie Rosario (L) LF
Freddie Freeman (L) 1B
Ozzie Albies (S) 2B
Austin Riley (R) 3B
Jorge Soler (R) RF
Adam Duvall (R) CF
Travis d'Arnaud (R) C
Dansby Swanson (R) SS
Ian Anderson (R) P
The Visitors
Astros Batting Order
Jose Altuve (R) 2B
Michael Brantley (L) RF
Alex Bregman (R) 3B
Yordan Alvarez (L) LF
Carlos Correa (R) SS
Kyle Tucker (L) CF
Yuli Gurriel (R) 1B
Martín Maldonado (R) C
Luis Garcia (R) P
Tonight’s action moves to Atlanta’s Truist Park for Games 3, 4 and 5. If it should become necessary, Games 6 and 7 will then move back to Houston’s Minute Maid Park. The series comes in all even at one game apiece and the biggest change for tonight will be Truist Park itself where we switch over to National League ground rules and there will be no designated hitter. With reports that in the off-season, the league is likely to institute the designated hitter rule across both leagues, this may be the last opportunity to see pitchers bat in World Series baseball.
Welcome to the live commentary of Game 3 of the World Series between the Houston Astros and the Atlanta Braves.