In a stunning turnaround, the Rangers went from being on the receiving end of a no-hitter to triumphantly securing their first-ever World Series title in just three innings.
Game Summary:
Following a disastrous bullpen performance in Game 4, the D-backs pinned their hopes on ace Zac Gallen to force a Game 6. Despite a three-game losing streak, Gallen, a strong contender for the Cy Young award this season, took the mound after allowing three earned runs in his previous outing.
But Gallen was a whole new pitcher in Game 5. To put it simply, he was untouchable. He breezed through the first three innings, retiring the side in just 13 pitches each time. By the end of the fourth inning, Gallen had a perfect game going, throwing only 35 pitches.
It wasn’t until the fifth inning that the Rangers managed to get their first baserunner, with Nathaniel Lowe drawing a walk. Unfortunately for Texas, that was all they could muster. Gallen continued to dominate, matching the opposing pitcher, Nathan Eovaldi, who was also putting on a stellar performance. The score remained 0-0 after six innings.
One of the fascinating aspects of baseball is that even the most dominant pitcher can suddenly falter with just a few pitches. After retiring the first 19 batters without giving up a hit, Gallen suddenly allowed three consecutive hits. Corey Seager hit an opposite-field grounder, followed by a double into the gap from Evan Carter.
Mitch Garver, filling in for the injured Adolis Garcia, delivered the third hit when the Rangers needed it the most.
And that turned out to be the turning point.
In a matter of five pitches, the momentum shifted from the home team witnessing their ace’s historic performance to the visiting team counting down the outs. The first reliever called upon to protect the slimmest of leads was the unsteady Aroldis Chapman, who managed to secure two outs and a walk (which, by his standards, was a decent outing).
Josh Sborz, a pitcher who was once considered expendable before the 2021 season, was tasked with finishing the seventh inning and pitching the eighth and ninth, a job he executed flawlessly.
Then the Rangers made things a little less nerve-wracking.
Key Moment:
In a World Series elimination game, insurance runs are crucial. And the Rangers secured them in the top of the ninth, thanks to some unfortunate mishaps (for the Diamondbacks).
Josh Jung and Nathaniel Lowe started the inning with back-to-back singles against Arizona closer Paul Sewald. Jonah Heim followed up with another single, which ended up being disastrous for the D-backs when their stellar defender, Alek Thomas, completely missed the bouncing ball in center field.
Although the Diamondbacks managed to keep it a 3-0 game through the next two batters, Marcus Semien sealed their fate with a two-run homer.
Impact Player:
While Gallen sailed smoothly through the game, Eovaldi had to battle relentlessly.
The Rangers enlisted Eovaldi for performances like this, and he delivered – albeit in an incredibly stressful manner. The Diamondbacks had opportunities with a leadoff runner, a runner in scoring position, and even loaded bases throughout the game. Yet, they failed to capitalize, ending up 0-for-9 with runners in scoring position and leaving a staggering 11 runners on base. These haunting numbers exposed the flaws in a team that relied heavily on getting on base, speed, and clutch hits.
Eovaldi finished his start with a perfect sixth inning, his first flawless inning since the second inning of Game 1. It may not have been pretty, but he got the job done, and the Texas Rangers emerged as champions.
