What Astros, Phillies need to do to win

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There will be a World Series in 2022.

The Commissioner's Trophy will be on the line on Friday when the Houston Astros and Philadelphia Phils meet.

The American League's top seed, the Astros, rolled over the rest of the Junior Circuit under MLB's new playoff format.

What have we learned about these teams? What are they going to do to win? Which players could make the difference in the game? The experts broke it down.

What is the most amazing thing about the Astros?

Passan thinks everything is a thing. It's fine The pitching depth of the Astros is their defining characteristic. They have two frontline starters at the top of their rotation. Each of them would be a starter on most teams. The amount of relief talent in their bullpen makes any lead feel comfortable. The Astros are very good, but their pitching is the reason they are still perfect.

Houston's roster has depth. The Yankees would have been overjoyed if you had told them that Jose Altuve and Yordan Alvarez would have just one hit each. The rest of the Astros have led the way from Yuli Gurriel to Alex Bregman. The Houston team can beat you in many ways, from its deep pitching staff to its lineup, which can knock you out with the long ball, to singles and doubles. Consistency is on top of that. In the American League Division Series, Houston proved that depth and consistency are good in October.

Will it work against the Phils in the World Series?

Passan: The way the Phils are hitting right now poses a greater challenge than the other teams. Kyle Schwarber, J.T. Realmuto, and others can't be allowed unless the starter is cruising, and Houston has the goods to counteract that.

The Astros won the American League title for the second year in a row. They traveled back to the World Series.

The Astros swept the Yankees.

It's like watching Yordan Alvarez.

There is a return to dominance by Verlander.

Getting hot at the right time is something to be said about that October magic. Philadelphia has taken a cue from last year's Braves and has gotten hot when it counts the most. It was a sports moment too on-the-nose for the movies, but it felt written in the stars by the baseball gods whenHarper hit the go-ahead home run in the NLCS.

Who is the one player who is going to help the Astros win the title?

Passan thinks Jose Altuve is a foolish answer considering the Astros have gotten to the World Series. Houston needs production from the top of its order, and an Astros lineup with Altuve getting on base takes an engine that's already spitting out lots of horses.

He has been Houston's X factor so far this month. The previously unheralded freshman has been a star for the Astros when Altuve andlvarez have struggled. If Altuve and Alvarez continue to struggle, other guys will need to help the Astros win a World Series.

What is the most impressive thing about the Philadelphia team?

They immediately became the team everyone in the organization thought they could be, one with great starting pitching and massive power, enough to overcome any defensive flaws or inconsistentness. The three players are playing with the most confidence they have all year.

The stars are hot, not just the homers, but also the pitcher, who has a 1.78 earned run average in four starts. It would make sense for the Phils to go with Nola and Wheeler in the second game since Wheeler started to tire in the second game of the Padres series. An extra day of rest could be helpful. Rob Thomson has done a great job adjusting on the fly and going with the hot hand, and the Phils'Reliever has figured things out a little. The one run that Seranthony was able to give was due to the wet conditions on Sunday. David Robertson has a lot of experience in the playoffs, and he is throwing heat from the left side. Thomson was willing to use Ranger to finish the game.

Will it help against the Astros in the World Series?

The Astros will lose in a short series, but eventually all that pitching will win them the game. Philadelphia can't match Houston's arm for arm, so the longer it goes, the better it is for Houston. The best-of-seven is usually won on the mound. That is where Houston wins.

They are going to the World Series. Their journey to the Fall Classic was covered by us.

The Phils won the NLCS.

The season was saved by Philadelphia.

It was inevitable that a confrontation would take place.

Andrew Bellatti has pitched well in his five appearances and could be a good match up against Houston's right-handed lineup, despite the fact that the relief corps is still questionable. Brad Hand might have to face the part of the order that includes Kyle Tucker. Thomson has been careful in his use of Dominguez, who is in his first full season since Tommy John surgery. In the regular season, he only pitched on back-to-back days 11 times and had days off between his six appearances in the playoffs. He's going to have to go back-to-back days at some point.

Who is the one player who is going to make the difference in the title game?

Rogers said that it might be cliché to pickHarper but he is the guy. The heartbeat runs through him as itTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkia They will need a special series to beat Houston. It would be great if they could get rejuvenated once again by BryceHarper. He's doing well in the playoffs. The Philadelphia's offense could shock the world if they get to a dominant Astros staff. The beginning is withHarper.

Nola is my key guy and I'm hoping for another big series fromHarper. Wheeler is capable of dominating in his outings. The Astros are going to have a better starting pitcher than the other team. There were two great starts by Nola, one against the Braves and another against theCardinals. He allowed back-to-back home runs in the second and then four runs in the fifth as the Padres came back from a four-run deficit. If Nola is able to go deep, that will mean more fresh arms for the starter games. One reason to start Nola in Game 2 is that he had a 3.84 earned run average in the regular season on four days of rest. If he goes in the first two games, he gets four days of rest, but if he goes in the last two games, he gets five days of rest. The decision on how to align their rotation is intriguing.