Houston sitting pretty after Game 5 victory

DON’T CELEBRATE JUST YET — After driving in the game-winning run at the top of the 10th inning, Houston’s Alex Bregman celebrates with an interesting look towards his dugout. (Getty Images)

The World Series is here and it has certainly been an entertaining series to behold, with a couple of games going into extra innings, great pitching and big bats coming through in clutch situations, and both games 2 and 5 being some of the most entertaining baseball in the last ten years.

As of Monday, Astros are currently in the lead at 3 games to 2 in the iconic 7 game series. This series has seen some of the biggest stars hitting homers all across the field, with 22 total home runs in the first five games. Both sides will be analyzed and a prediction given on the results of game 6 and a possible game 7.

Houston Astros:
This is only the second World Series appearance for the Astros, the other being a four game sweep in 2005 by the Chicago White Sox. This series has gone differently though, with Houston taking the lead through five games. The Houston Astros core have looked pretty good throughout the entire series, with solid hitting and a lot of luck. Outside of game 5, this team has not put up the large offensive threat they have been all year long. However, what they have lacked in overall hitting, they have made up for with home runs, having 13 as a team in five games.

This squad has put together a couple of comeback victories. Game 5 is a prime example of this, with the Astros coming back three times to put themselves ahead 3-2 in the series. This team has been led by AL MVP Jose Altuve, who has had five RBI’s and two home runs in this series already. Another big part has been the pitching, led by Justin Verlander and Lance McCullers. Verlander has thrown a stellar postseason, having four wins with a 2.05 ERA. McCullers had a pretty good outing in game 3, helping his squad keep the score low and leading the Astros to a game 3 victory.

LA Dodgers:
The Dodgers have put together one of the most well- rounded teams in baseball and this year has been their year to win the series. Clayton Kershaw had a fantastic outing in game 1, only allowing one run to help his team win that game. However, his one weakness this postseason has been giving up home runs, which he did during game 5. Throughout the postseason, Kershaw has let up eight home runs than any other pitcher in a single postseason with eight. This series has also seen great performances by Logan Forsythe and Joc Pederson. Forsythe has a .308 batting average in the world series. Pederson has swung the bat phenomenally, having a .364 batting average and two home runs in the series. The Dodgers have put themselves in a position where they have to win out, but if any squad can, it is them.

Consensus:
This has been one of the most entertaining World Series with two teams that seem very evenly matched. This series can go either way. The Dodgers are extremely talented and could easily put themselves back in the series with a win on Tuesday. However, the Astros have pushed past the pitching juggernaut that is Clayton Kershaw. Game 6 will see two of the best starters in the MLB, Justin Verlander for the Astros and Rich Hill for the Dodgers.

The Houston Astros will likely win game 6 and their first world series in franchise history. Verlander is simply too good of an ace to let them down now, and we will be talking about his game 6 for years to come. However, if the Dodgers can pull out a game 6 victory, they will have the momentum to go into game 7. If the Dodgers win game 6, they will win game 7 and bring the pennant back to Los Angeles. Watch for Josh Reddick, George Springer and Yasmani Grandal to have good games at the plate, both Reddick and Springer have had a good outing against Hill and same with Grandal. Game 6 is on Tuesday at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.