October 19, 2023, 11:00 p.m. ET
It was an eventful Thursday in the championship series as the 2023 MLB Playoffs continued.
The Arizona Diamondbacks picked up a big win at home after a slow 0-2 start to the NLCS as Ketel Marte earned a 2-1 win over the Philadelphia Phillies in Game 3. The Houston Astros continued to have a dominant performance in Arlington. Texas finished the series 2-2 with a 10-3 win over the Texas Rangers.
We’ve got all the action covered with live updates and insights from Texas and Arizona during the games.
Important links: Complete playoff schedule and results
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Takeaways
Astros 10, Rangers 3: Obviously, the Astros just had to leave Houston. The defending champions have inexplicably performed much better away from home than at home this season and were absolutely dominant in Arlington. The trend has continued into an American League Championship Series that suddenly shifted in the Astros’ favor. One night after an eight-run outing in Game 3, the Astros got nine hits and eight RBIs from the top five hitters in their lineup (Jose Altuve, Mauricio Dubon, Alex Bregman, Yordan Alvarez and Jose Abreu).
They took a 3-0 lead in the first inning against Andrew Heaney. After coming back to tie the game, the Rangers put together a disappointing four-run fourth, highlighted by Abreu’s two outs, three runs and a 438-foot drive to left-center field. Chas McCormick, their No. 7 hitter, essentially ended the Rangers with his two-run home run in the seventh. With the series tied at 2, the Astros have home field advantage again. Even better, they didn’t have to use any of their high-leverage relievers in Game 4, setting them up for a critical Game 5 that will pit Jordan Montgomery against Justin Verlander again. The Astros are inevitable. –Alden Gonzalez
Diamondbacks 2, Phillies 1: All it takes is a game. That’s what the Diamondbacks said to themselves on Thursday. The Phillies looked unbeatable. They were a machine designed to make it through the postseason unscathed. And even in a game where the Phillies’ offense struggled against Diamondbacks starter Brandon Pfaadt, their own starter, Ranger Suarez, was able to keep him scoreless. But Arizona didn’t back down. It answered the Phillies’ seventh-inning run with one of its own, and then came the ninth. The Diamondbacks loaded the bases and Ketel Marte hit a single to Craig Kimbrel, and the sellout crowd at Chase Field was excited for the Diamondbacks to save their season.
Next up is Game 4 – a wild card. The Diamondbacks are dead-on without a real starter. The Phillies will go with either Taijuan Walker or Cristopher Sanchez, each of whom last pitched on September 30th. It’s as winnable a game as the Diamondbacks are from here after knocking out two division winners in Milwaukee and Los Angeles, it’s not wise to doubt it any further. –Jeff Passan