Astros Defeat Phillies to Secure World Series Title, Break NL East Dominance

The Astros had been to the World Series three times in four years, and the previous two times they’d managed to drop the series against underdog teams from the National League’s Eastern division. In 2019, the Astros went up against the upstart Washington Nationals, who defied expectations and became World Champions in a very close series.

Then, again, in 2021, the Astros found themselves against an NL East team with fewer than 90 regular-season wins – the Atlanta Braves. The Braves battled with grit and determination that year, besting the Astros in a stunning 4-2 victory and securing the Braves’ first World Series title since the 1990s. This year, the Philadelphia Phillies tried to pull off the same magic trick.

No Red October

The Phillies weren’t the best team out of the NL East this year–they finished third, behind the electric Mets and Braves, who tied for the top spot at 101 wins each. The Braves beat the Mets in the season series so they got the division title this year, but it was the same difference for the Phillies. But they got hot at the right time, scorching a path through the post-season with star players like Bryce Harper smoking the ball and all-star pitchers like Aaron Nola and Zack Wheeler.

After the Wild Card series, it looked like the Phillies’ post-season success would flame out against the juggernaut Braves. That wasn’t the case – the Phils wanted it more and bested the NL East winners to battle through and get a chance against the Padres in the NLCS. Four more wins in that series brought them face-to-face with the big bad wolf of modern baseball: the Houston Astros.

Astro Dynasty?

With their 4-2 series win over the Phillies, the Astros shook off the narrative that they were only successful in recent years due to cheating. A scandal from 2017 had cast a long shadow over the team, but with this “clean” World Series win, the Astros are finally free of the lingering doubts that dogged them for years.

The team got the best version of a World Series win, too: they got to do it at home in front of a sold-out crowd of cheering fans. This win marks manager Dusty Baker’s first WS title as a manager, too, a momentous occasion for longtime fans of the stalwart manager. The only question now is how long the Astros’ impressive dynasty will remain unbeatable like this.