Happy Friday, Athletics Nation!
Both the Texas Rangers and Philadelphia Phillies saw opportunities to finish Thursday just one win away from a World Series berth as the day’s League Championship Series action convened. However, neither team succeeded, leaving both league pennants up for grabs rather than putting the Houston Astros and Arizona Diamondbacks up against the ropes.
The Diamondbacks managed to claw one back from the seemingly unstoppable Phillies in a nail-biter of a Game 3 of the NLCS by a score of 2-1. D-backs starting pitcher Brandon Pfaadt put on a second consecutive master class on the mound, holding the Phils to just two hits through 5u2154 innings and striking out nine.