3 Phillies most to blame for World Series Game 4 loss to Houston
By Kevin Henry
After grabbing momentum with a shutout win in Game 3 of the World Series, the Philadelphia Phillies watched as the Houston Astros returned the favor in historic fashion on Wednesday night.
With Houston Astros starting pitcher Cristian Javier spinning a no-hitter through his 6.0 innings of work, there was little room for error for the Philadelphia Phillies in Game 4. However, a five-run fifth inning was all that the Astros needed to even up the World Series with a 5-0 decision.
3 Philadelphia Phillies most to blame for World Series Game 4 loss
1. Jose Alvarado
With Tuesday’s 7-0 win, many around the Phillies organization were thrilled that the franchise didn’t have to use some of its top relievers during the blowout victory, saving them for later in the week when they might be called upon in a tough situation.
Such was the case on Wednesday with Alvarado entered the game in relief of Aaron Nola with the bases loaded and no outs in the fifth. However, the 27-year-old southpaw plunked Yordan Alvarez with the first pitch he threw, and things didn’t get much better for him from there. By the time the inning was over, five runs had scored and the Astros had taken control of the game by taking advantage of an ineffective Alvarado.
Heading into Wednesday’s outing, Alvarado had allowed just three earned runs in 9.0 postseason innings. Houston tagged him for two runs in a single frame in perhaps a Series-turning inning.