Dingers, D-Backs and Dubya: an unlikely World Series begins in Texas

We one of the most conservative fan bases across Major League Baseball, there could only be one choice to throw out the ceremonial first pitch as the Texas Rangers returned to the World Series for the first time since 2011.

The Dallas coin toss librarian and former co-owner of the Rangers was so low that even a hall-of-famer, former catcher Iván “Pudge” Rodríguez, couldn’t catch him before he scraped the dirt.

Yet George W. Bush exuded confidence and cheerfulness. “I think in six games we will be victorious,” he told Derek Jeter on Fox Sports before adding a caveat: “but we’ll see.”

Wouldn’t want to prematurely declare victory, finally. But Texas accomplished the first mission on Friday night, finally and in thrilling fashion, when Corey Seager tied them at 5-5 in the bottom of the ninth with a two-run home run before another mighty fly, from Adolis García, won the night. in the 11th inning.

Inviting joyful celebrations, and the first in a World Series since 2018it wasn’t so much a walk-off homer as a saunter, dance, jump, hug, helmet-turn of a homer from the borderline inevitable 30-year-old Cuban outfielder putting together one of the best postseasons of any slugger.

After six years with one or both of the Houston Astros and Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series, this matchup between sides that endured dismal losing campaigns last year felt fresh and fun: light on star power but full of excellent fielding. , youthful energy and late drama as the power of the Arizona Diamondbacks, their bullpen, burst.

Arizona, a National League wild-card team, was aggressive on the bases and solid defensively as they took a 5-3 lead against veteran Rangers starting pitcher Nathan Eovaldi, who had won all four of his previous postseason games this month.

They were also resilient, as they were against the Philadelphia Phillies in the previous round — until closer Paul Sewald served a crushing fastball to Seager, the shortstop on a 10-year, $325 million contract, and reliever Miguel Castro was taken deep by García. The franchise’s only previous appearance in the World Series came in 2001, a win over the New York Yankees in seven games.

Shrub threw a ceremonial field also in that series. He sold his stake in the Rangers when he was governor of Texas in 1998, two years before he was elected president. The current majority shareholder, Ray C Davis, is an energy magnate donated more than $100,000 to the failed presidential campaign of George’s younger brother Jeb in 2016; under his tenure, the Rangers are the only MLB team never to hold an LGBTQ Pride Night.

Seeking their first title, the Rangers also qualified for the playoffs as a wild card, defeating Houston over seven games in the American League Championship Series. They were World Series losers in 2010 and 2011: the first time against a San Francisco Giants team coached by current Texas manager Bruce Bochy, and the second time via one of the most torturous implosions in American sports history , when they lost two runs. led in the bottom of the ninth and 10th inning in Game 6, but then also lost Game 7.

This time the climax was gentler as Seager hit his fourth home run of the postseason to even the score and deny Arizona starting pitcher Zac Gallen a win. “It’s hard to hit a bigger home run than what he did there. He saved us,” Bochy said. “He set everyone on fire.” Then García cleared the fence for the fifth consecutive match. He now has 22 RBI in these playoffs, a single postseason record.

This is the first World Series between two teams with a retractable roof ballpark; on a rainy evening in north Texas, the game might have been postponed or postponed had it not been for Globe Life Field.

The $1.2 billion venue, which opened in 2020 — $500 million of the cost was contributed by taxpayers — hosted the World Series between the Dodgers and Tampa Bay Rays that same year.

This is the standout moment yet, although the most appealing aspect of Globe Life Field is the view of the adjacent vintage former Rangers ballpark through the windows. Given the hangar-like exterior, the uninitiated may wonder upon first approach whether they are about to witness a sporting event or a hull repair.

Inside, a gleaming tangle of corrugated iron and exposed ductwork awaits; it could have worked as a design concept if the site was really a lovingly repurposed warehouse in a reclaimed industrial neighborhood, rather than a clinical new building built on a parking lot and surrounded by parking lots. There is a small irony, or perhaps a major discrepancy, in building a new stadium that can withstand the heat and rain of the climate crisis era and make it almost impossible to reach except by car. Arlington, with a population of 400,000, is often cited as the largest city in the US without it mass public transport system.

In any case, closed stadiums keep the noise in while keeping the weather out. The stands crackled and roared as the Rangers made their sudden comeback, and the psychological damage to the Diamondbacks could be significant ahead of Saturday’s second game in Arlington.

Before Friday, Sewald had not allowed a run since September 15 and had not blown a save since August 26. “The shock factor was very high,” Arizona manager Torey Lovullo admitted to reporters. “There is no worse feeling in this match than coming closer and blowing the save chance at the last second.” Sewald said.

Once again, Byung-Hyun Kim infamous yielded two saves in the 2001 World Series, the Diamondbacks still prevailed. “I don’t think any of these players were old enough to remember what was going on at the time,” Lovullo said. “I don’t think anyone is connecting these dots.” It is better to write history than to relive it.