Troy Taormina/USA TODAY Sports
Man, oh man, that was fun. At its best, the World Series is the perfect display of what makes our game special, and last night’s Game 1 had everything. The Phillies pulled off the rare World Series comeback of five or more runs to beat the Astros, 6–5, in 10 innings.
Philadelphia catcher J.T. Realmuto was the star of the game. He lifted a two-run double off the wall in left-center field that tied the game in the fifth and lined a game-winning, opposite-field solo shot leading off the 10th. He also made one of the most magnificent throws I’ve ever seen from a catcher when he tried to catch Jose Altuve stealing second base in the bottom of the ninth. Altuve was called safe on the field, and after review, the ruling stood, though that was probably due to the videos not having enough evidence to say for sure that the call was incorrect. I thought Altuve was out, but it was tough to tell. Either way, Realmuto darted a one hopper to second baseman Jean Segura, who caught the ball on Altuve’s leg. The throw could not have been any better, and it was all the more impressive because of Altuve’s great jump.
