Astros One Win Away After Taking Game 5 Of World Series

The last baseball game of 2019 played in D.C. ended with a thud.

The Houston Astros beat the Washington Nationals in Game 5 of the World Series, 7-1, to take a 3-2 series lead. Starter Gerrit Cole pitched seven strong innings. Carlos Correa, Yordan Alvarez, and George Springer hit home runs. The Astros won their third straight road game; the visiting team has won every game this series.

Game 5 was supposed to be a matchup of two marquee pitchers, but the Nationals scratched Max Scherzer with an injury. His last-minute replacement, Joe Ross, gave up four runs over five innings. Alvarez took Ross deep in the second; Correa homered in the fourth.

The Nationals couldn’t get anything going off Cole, anyway. He gave up just three hits, two walks, and a Juan Soto homer in the bottom of the seventh. The Nats tried to put together a little rally in that inning, when the score was still 4-1, but Cole got Victor Robles looking with a man on to end the inning.

The Astros tacked on three insurance runs late, including Springer’s homer in the top of the ninth. The Nationals are now on the brink of elimination after winning the first two games. The series resumes Tuesday in Houston.