Division Series Day 2: Four-Game Friday Recaps
Friday was MLB’s answer to March Madness with four Division Series games spread out over the afternoon and evening for fans’ viewing pleasure. The Astros took a commanding 2-0 lead over the White Sox, while the Red Sox evened things up with Tampa. In the National League, the Brewers and Giants opened their postseasons with victories behind strong pitching.
Astros lead 2-0
W: Ryne Stanek
L: Aaron Bummer (the jokes write themselves)
The White Sox have yet to solve the Astros. They showed more fight today, taking the lead with a three-run rally in the 5th inning, but they were unable to hold on. The Astros would tie the game with Yuli Gurriel‘s two-run single in the bottom of the 5th and take control with five unanswered runs in the 7th.
Hall of Famer baseball person Tony La Russa might think the final score is misleading because the White Sox played close for much of the game, but he can’t argue with the math of 2-0.
La Russa: "The score to me is very misleading."
— ESPN White Sox (@ESPNWhiteSox) October 8, 2021
Brewers lead 1-0
W: Adrian Houser
L: Charlie Morton
S: Josh Hader
This game was scoreless until Rowdy Tellez‘s home run in the 7th inning, which was all the Brewers would need to secure a victory. Atlanta was not able to muster any offense beyond Joc Pederson‘s 8th inning solo blast.
Series tied 1-1
W: Tanner Houck
L: Collin McHugh
The balls were flying at Tropicana Field tonight – the AL East rivals combined for seven home runs. Boston took an early lead, scoring two runs in the 1st inning. Tampa responded with five runs in the bottom of the inning. Four of those runs scored on Jordan Luplow‘s grand slam, which was the second grand slam in Tampa Bay postseason history.
The Rays were unable to put the Red Sox away, however. Boston chipped away at the lead, and Kiké Hernández tied the game at 5 with his solo shot to left field in the 5th inning. J.D. Martinez provided a go-ahead three-run bomb later in the inning, and the Sox continued to hammer away, scoring six more runs in the late innings.
Giants lead 1-0
W: Logan Webb
L: Walker Buehler
Webb’s postseason debut was stellar. He shut down the Dodgers offense with 7.2 innings of scoreless work, striking out 10 LA batters. The Giants played long ball, scoring on home runs by Buster Posey, Kris Bryant and Brandon Crawford.
Saturday will be a travel day for the American League teams, while NL action will resume for Game 2. Atlanta and Milwaukee will open action at 5:07 PM ET, while Los Angeles and San Francisco will be the nightcap once again at 9:07 PM ET.
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