World Series Game 5: Braves host Astros needing one more win for the club’s fourth title

The Braves are inching closer to their fourth World Series crown – and their second since moving to Atlanta in 1966 – but the Houston Astros are not going away quietly in Game 5 of the World Series on Sunday night.  

Adam Duvall hit a first-inning grand slam off Framber Valdez, but the Astros have clawed back to tie the game, 4-4, thanks to RBI doubles from Alex Bregman and Carlos Correa as well as a pair of sacrifice RBis from Yuli Gurriel and Martin Maldonado.   

Although he did bounce back with a 1-2-3 second inning, Valdez looked like he was about to have a short night after a rough first frame.  

Back in the leadoff spot for Atlanta, Jorge Soler reached on a bad-hop single to left leading off. Freddie Freeman flied out and Albies grounded into a forceout. Austin Riley singled, and when left fielder Yordan Alvarez threw to third even though he had no chance to catch the speedy Albies, Riley continued to second.

Eddie Rosario walked, loading the bases, and Duvall responded by driving a first-pitch 95.4 mph fastball on the low, outside corner to the opposite field. Right fielder Michael Brantley backtracked but ran out of room, and the ball soared over the 16-foot brick wall in right and into the second row of seats in front of the Chop House restaurant,

It was just the third first-inning slam in Series history, following Elmer Smith in Game 5 in 1920 and Bobby Richardson in Game 3 in 1960.

Valdez was facing the Astros for the second time in the Series after losing the opener.

Meanwhile, rookie Tucker Davidson pitched around a walk to throw a scoreless first inning for the Braves, his first major league action in 4 1/2 months.

Added to the roster on Wednesday after Charlie Morton broke a leg in the opener, Davidson entered with just five major league appearances – the last June 15.

Adam Duvall #14 of the Atlanta Braves celebrates as he rounds the bases after hitting a grand slam home run against the Houston Astros during the first inning in Game Five of the World Series at Truist Park on Sunday

Adam Duvall #14 of the Atlanta Braves celebrates as he rounds the bases after hitting a grand slam home run against the Houston Astros during the first inning in Game Five of the World Series at Truist Park on Sunday

Amid ongoing controversy over the Braves' name and 'tomahawk chop' chant, several fans were seen wearing headdresses

Amid ongoing controversy over the Braves’ name and ‘tomahawk chop’ chant, several fans were seen wearing headdresses 

A few fans wear headdresses prior to Game Five of the World Series between the Astros and Braves in Atlanta

A few fans wear headdresses prior to Game Five of the World Series between the Astros and Braves in Atlanta 

A fan holds a sign prior to Game Five between the Houston Astros and the Atlanta Braves of the World Series at Truist Park

A fan holds a sign prior to Game Five between the Houston Astros and the Atlanta Braves of the World Series at Truist Park

A fan dressed for halloween is seen at Game 5 of the World Series on Sunday at Atlanta's Truist Park

A fan dressed for halloween is seen at Game 5 of the World Series on Sunday at Atlanta’s Truist Park 

Tucker Davidson #64 of the Atlanta Braves warms up prior to Game Five of the World Series

Tucker Davidson #64 of the Atlanta Braves warms up prior to Game Five of the World Series

Doug (R) with daughter Sydney of Atlanta and dressed as Thing 1 and Thing 2 for Halloween during Sunday's Game 5

Doug (R) with daughter Sydney of Atlanta and dressed as Thing 1 and Thing 2 for Halloween during Sunday’s Game 5

A fan looks on prior to Game Five of the World Series between the Houston Astros and the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park

A fan looks on prior to Game Five of the World Series between the Houston Astros and the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park

‘It’s such a cool moment for this city, but we got one more,’ said Swanson, an Atlanta-area native, who was traded to the Braves from the Arizona Diamondbacks in December of 2015, just over six months after he was drafted No. 1 overall. ‘They have a great ballclub over there and we can’t take anything for granted. We have to come out (Sunday) and be ready to play our game.’

The Astros sent Game 1 starter Framber Valdez to the mound Sunday. Valdez was roughed up for five runs over two innings in Game 1, giving up eight hits along with home runs from Soler and Adam Duvall. 

Left-hander Tucker Davidson got the start for Atlanta. 

Valdez already has eight postseason appearances (seven starts) over the past two seasons and is 4-2 with a 3.73 ERA.

But Valdez’s Game 1 start is not the Astros’ biggest concern. Houston has scored just two combined runs over the past two games and left 11 runners on base in Game 4, including seven over the first four innings.

‘They have good pitchers and they have been executing every pitch,’ said Houston’s Jose Altuve, who has two home runs in the World Series but is just 4-for-18 in four games. ‘They are not giving us a lot of pitches to hit. We’re trying hard as hitters, we have a good lineup, but sometimes you have to give credit to the other team.’

No. 3 hitter Alex Bregman is just 1-for-14 in the series with five strikeouts and no extra-base hits. Cleanup hitter Yordan Alvarez is 1-for-11. Carlos Correa is 2-for-14.

Astros manager Dusty Baker was asked after Game 4 if he would consider a lineup change that has Bregman lower in the order.

‘Well, yeah, I thought about it,’ Baker said. ‘I’ll let you know tomorrow when I make the lineup out.’

A Atlanta Braves fan holds up a sign during batting practice before Game 5 of the World Series against the Houston Astros

A Atlanta Braves fan holds up a sign during batting practice before Game 5 of the World Series against the Houston Astros

Atlanta Braves second baseman Ozzie Albies walks across the field ahead of Game 5 of the World Series against the Astros

Atlanta Braves second baseman Ozzie Albies walks across the field ahead of Game 5 of the World Series against the Astros

A fan watches during batting practice before Game 5 of the World Series on Sunday at Atlanta's Truist Park

A fan watches during batting practice before Game 5 of the World Series on Sunday at Atlanta’s Truist Park

Atlanta Braves designated hitter Jorge Soler smiles during batting practice before Game 5 on Sunday at Truist Park

Atlanta Braves designated hitter Jorge Soler smiles during batting practice before Game 5 on Sunday at Truist Park

Hall of Famer Greg Maddux threw out the ceremonial first pitch earlier in the evening. 

Maddux, wearing his Braves jersey, tipped his cap in response to an ovation from fans as he walked onto the field. Fittingly, he threw the pitch to Eddie Perez, who was often his designated catcher.

Perez, also a former Braves coach, now is a special advisor for player development for the team.

Maddux won four consecutive Cy Young Awards for the Chicago Cubs and the Braves, including in 1995 when he posted a remarkable 19-2 record with a 1.63 ERA for Atlanta’s 1995 World Series champion team.

It was a rare Atlanta appearance for ‘Mad Dog’ Maddux. The 55-year-old Maddux is the pitching coach for UNLV.  

Pitcher Zack Greinke #21 of the Houston Astros hits a single against Kyle Wright on Saturday night in Atlanta

Pitcher Zack Greinke #21 of the Houston Astros hits a single against Kyle Wright on Saturday night in Atlanta 

There’s a good chance Major League Baseball will bring the designated hitter to the National League next year – likely forever. That means Sunday night’s game at Truist Park might mark the final time a pitcher ever appears in a big league batting order.

‘I think it’s definitely going to be pretty special that this could be the last pitchers ever hitting in baseball. We’ve definitely brought it up,’ Braves starter Ian Anderson said.

No more Madison Bumgarner swinging for the fences. No more Bartolo Colon flailing and losing his helmet – or shocking everyone by going deep. No more Greinke grounding a single up the middle, as he did Saturday night in Game 4.

Say goodbye to double switches. Sacrifice bunts would shrivel up and automatic intentional walks to face the pitcher would vanish, too. So would the risk of a $20 million ace pulling his hamstring while running the bases.

Plus, the little nuances that would disappear: the bat boy running out a warmup jacket to the pitcher at first base, the on-deck hitter lingering near the batter’s box to give his hurler more time to walk back to the dugout.

More than a century of strategy and baseball fabric, ripped away.

‘Once it ever changes to no DH, then it will probably never change back, and that’s something that would sadden me,’ Astros manager Dusty Baker said.

Good riddance, says Houston shortstop Carlos Correa.

‘To me, that’s not real baseball,’ he said Saturday. ‘I want to see real hitters out there.’

Sure, a few pitchers might get an at-bat here and there, maybe in extra innings when teams run out of position players.

So who knows, maybe the Hall of Fame will get the bat Framber Valdez uses when he starts Game 5 for Houston. The Braves plan a bullpen game, so it’s possible none of their pitchers will hit.

‘To be honest with you, the last time that I hit was in the regular season in San Diego, I thought I was done hitting,’ Valdez said through a translator Saturday.

‘Fourteen or 15 was the last time that I hit regularly in a league. I liked to hit in that era,’ he said. ‘It’s a little bit different hitting as a pitcher here in the big leagues. So I still like hitting in softball back home in the Dominican, but hitting as a major league pitcher, I don’t like it.’

ATLANTA, GEORGIA - OCTOBER 31: Manager Brian Snitker #43 of the Atlanta Braves looks on during batting practice ahead of Game Five of the World Series against the Houston Astros at Truist Park on Sunday

ATLANTA, GEORGIA – OCTOBER 31: Manager Brian Snitker #43 of the Atlanta Braves looks on during batting practice ahead of Game Five of the World Series against the Houston Astros at Truist Park on Sunday 

The DH debate has raged since 1973, when Ron Blomberg of the New York Yankees became the first player to fill the role. It continues to this day, when American League teams often feel at a disadvantage when the World Series shifts to an NL park.

Holding a 3-1 lead, the Braves hope to clinch the crown Sunday night. If not, the scene moves back to a DH setup at Minute Maid Park in Houston.

Since the DH era began, the only pitchers to homer in the World Series have been Joe Blanton for Philadelphia in 2008 and Ken Holtzman for Oakland in 1974.

Overall, pitchers are just 3 for 49 (.061) at the plate this postseason.

Not that many pitchers do a lot of damage at other times, either – besides Shohei Ohtani, of course. Big league hurlers hit a collective .108 this season. Max Scherzer, who used to handle the bat fairly well, was a whopping 0 for 62 for the Dodgers and Washington, didn’t safely reach base once and struck out half the time.

Greinke, meanwhile, does fine at the plate. So much so that Baker moved him from the pitcher’s customary ninth spot in the batting order to eighth in Game 4.

The only other pitcher who didn’t bat ninth in the World Series was Babe Ruth back in 1918. Greinke responded with the first hit by a pitcher in the Fall Classic since Cleveland’s Corey Kluber in 2016.

‘Some of the guys don’t miss it, some pitchers. And there’s some pitchers that absolutely miss it. Like Greinke, he’s dying to hit,’ Baker said earlier this week.

Baker would prefer to see things stay the way they are.

‘I’m in favor of leaving it the way it is. Let the DH stand in the American League, and in the National League play the National League style of ball because they’re both interesting,’ he said.

Braves reliever Jesse Chavez agreed.

‘My personal opinion, I think it should stay the same. I think it’s beneficial for the game because it adds two different aspects. It’s a chess game out there. It’s not checkers,’ he explained.

Braves manager Brian Snitker has spent four decades in the Atlanta system at all levels as a player, coach and skipper. He admits he would miss the double switches, bunts and other aspects of National League strategy.

But after watching the NL use the DH in 2020 during the pandemic-shortened season, he saw a lot to like.

‘I just see so many pitchers now that go to the plate and, No. 1, they don’t want to,’ Snitker said. ‘Honestly, I think it will be a better game to watch. It will be more action, more stuff going on.’

‘Prior to experiencing it last year, I was kind of like the old guard. I was not for it. I am for it now,’ he added. ‘Because I see for every Max Fried and Adam Wainwright and Madison Bumgarner, there’s 15 guys who can’t hit. Again, they don’t grow up hitting. They grow up pitching, and they’re not hitting.’

A general view of the field prior to Game Five of the World Series at Atlanta's Truist Park on Sunday afternoon

A general view of the field prior to Game Five of the World Series at Atlanta’s Truist Park on Sunday afternoon 

DONALD AND MELANIA TRUMP DO TOMAHAWK CHOP

Only months after calling for a boycott of Major League Baseball, former President Donald Trump did the tomahawk chop with Atlanta Braves fans at Game 4 of the World Series on Saturday night.

Trump stood beside former first lady Melania, as they chopped away with fans before the game between the Atlanta Braves and Houston Astros from a private suite.

It was the first time Melania had been seen in public since July, when she was spotted leaving the Trump Tower in New York City with son Barron, and the first time she had been seen with her husband since April.

Trump was expected to be joined by political allies, including US Senate candidate Herschel Walker.

Former President Donald Trump and his wife Melania perform the tomahawk chop before for Game 4 of baseball's World Series between the Houston Astros and the Atlanta Braves

Former President Donald Trump and his wife Melania perform the tomahawk chop before for Game 4 of baseball’s World Series between the Houston Astros and the Atlanta Braves

The Tomahawk Chop sees people move their arm forwards and backwards with an open palm, simulating chopping that would be done with a Tomahawk, a single-handed ax, originally constructed by Native Americans.

Among the reasons the chop has been slammed for being offensive and promoting a racist stereotype or caricature of Native Americans.  

‘The name ”Braves,” the tomahawk adorning the team’s uniform, and the ”tomahawk chop” that the team exhorts its fans to perform at home games are meant to depict and caricature not just one tribal community but all Native people, and that is certainly how baseball fans and Native people everywhere interpret them,’ National Congress of American Indians President Fawn Sharp said in a statement on Wednesday.

‘In our discussions with the Atlanta Braves, we have repeatedly and unequivocally made our position clear — Native people are not mascots, and degrading rituals like the ‘tomahawk chop’ that dehumanize and harm us have no place in American society,’ Scott added.

Trump released a statement in a mass email to his supporters Saturday about his planned World Series appearance:

‘Looking forward to being at the World Series in Atlanta tonight. Thank you to the Commissioner of Baseball Rob Manfred, and Randy Levine, president of the New York Yankees, for the invite. Melania and I are looking forward to a wonderful evening watching two great teams!’

MLB denied ever making the invitation and said in a statement, ‘He requested to attend the game.’

Among the reasons the chop is offensive is because it promotes a racist stereotype or caricature of Native Americans but the Trump's followed thousands of others in the crowd

Among the reasons the chop is offensive is because it promotes a racist stereotype or caricature of Native Americans but the Trump’s followed thousands of others in the crowd

Former football player and political candidate Herschel Walker interacts with former first lady and president of the United States Melania and Donald Trump. Trump was an owner of the New Jersey Generals when Walker played for the team in the now-defunct league, and they have maintained a relationship

Former football player and political candidate Herschel Walker interacts with former first lady and president of the United States Melania and Donald Trump. Trump was an owner of the New Jersey Generals when Walker played for the team in the now-defunct league, and they have maintained a relationship

The visit to Truist Park provided Trump an opportunity to be seen with Walker, the former University of Georgia Heisman Trophy winner and running back with the Dallas Cowboys, Minnesota Vikings and USFL New Jersey Generals.

Trump was an owner of the Generals when Walker played for the team in the now-defunct league, and they have maintained a relationship. Trump has encouraged Walker to run for Senate.

Indigenous peoples advocacy groups say the Braves' name and 'tomahawk chop' chant are both racist, but the Trump's went ahead and did it anyway

Indigenous peoples advocacy groups say the Braves’ name and ‘tomahawk chop’ chant are both racist, but the Trump’s went ahead and did it anyway

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell endorsed Walker on Wednesday. Walker is seeking to unseat Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock.

Trump encouraged a boycott of MLB games after Manfred removed the All-Star Game from Atlanta. The game instead was held in Denver. 

President Joe Biden supported moving the game, though some Braves fans and businesses near Truist Park complained they were being unfairly punished.

Manfred’s decision announced in April followed a protest of Georgia’s new voting law, which includes an ID requirement for mail-in votes. Critics say the law will negatively affect communities of color.

Trump may have selected Atlanta in hopes of a more positive reception than he received in his last World Series appearance. When still in office, he was booed when he sat in the stands at Game 5 of the 2019 World Series between the Astros and Washington at Nationals Park.

Trump was not shown on the Truist Park video board before the game however one moment that was caught on camera between former president Trump together with his wife Melania happened when the former first lady’s smile quickly drain away from her face.

It came just as the crowd had been cheering for the couple who even joined in the Braves signature ‘Tomahawk’ gesture prior to the start of the game.

Trump and Melania were both seen to be smiling broadly with the former president looking comfortable as he gestured and pointed to spectators who were waving back to him.

While television cameras were trained on the couple, Melania suddenly appeared to grow tired of the wave and point routine, and quickly turned away, rolling her eyes and her signature smile gone in an instant.   

– Associated Press 

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