The Washington Nationals celebrate after Game 2 of the baseball World Series against the Houston Astros Thursday in Houston. The Nationals won 12-3 to take a 2-0 lead in the series.
Eric Gay/AP
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Eric Gay/AP
Updated at 12:15 a.m. ET Thursday
The Washington Nationals beat the Houston Astros 12-3 in Game 2 of the 2019 World Series in Houston.
The Nationals broke through what had been a pitcher’s duel with six runs in the seventh inning as Washington sent 10 batters to the plate.
The Nationals opened the game by scoring two runs with a walk and a single, followed by a double by third baseman Anthony Rendon off of Astros ace Justin Verlander.
The Astros came back in the bottom of the first frame with two runs off of Nationals starter Stephen Strasburg on a home run by third baseman Alex Bregman after left fielder Michael Brantley had singled.
Both starters — Verlander and Strasburg — settled into a groove after the first inning, each allowing no runs for five innings.
But the wheels came off for the Astros in the top of the seventh inning starting with a solo homer by catcher Kurt Suzuki. Three walks, three singles, and defensive lapses by the Astros produced six runs that stunned the Houston crowd.
The Nationals added two more runs in the top of the eighth inning on a homer by Adam Eaton and another run in the ninth on a solo shot by outfielder Michael Taylor.
The Astros scored one run in the bottom of the ninth on a solo homer by Martin Maldonado. But by then the game was all but over.
By taking two games in Houston, the Nationals managed to do something few would have predicted: they beat the Astros two aces — Gerrit Cole and Justin Verlander — on consecutive nights.
The Nationals now lead the best-of-seven series 2-0 as the series heads for Washington, D.C.
