2017 World Series Enters All-Time Elite Due to Alleged Juiced Balls, HR Record

Catch your breath, baseball fans. The 2017 World Series isn't over yet.

Even if it ended now, however, through some act of God or Congress, it would rank among the most unforgettable of all time.

Sunday's Game 5—in which the Houston Astros prevailed 13-12 over the Los Angeles Dodgers in 10 innings after multiple lead changes and a roller-coaster of comebacks and heartbreak—was merely the latest salvo in what has been a barrage of excitement, controversy and home runs galore.

The Astros and Dodgers have now hit 22 dingers through five games. That breaks the record of 21 for most home runs in a single World Series, set in 2002's seven-game Fall Classic between the San Francisco Giants and Los Angeles Angels, headlined by peak-steroid-era Barry Bonds.

The long balls have been plentiful and notable, putting a fitting punctuation mark on a season in which both leagues combined to hit the most home runs in MLB history.

But that's only been the tip of the intrigue iceberg.

Is there something funky going on with the baseballs? Yes, if you listen to the pitching coaches and some pitchers on both sides.

"We had a well-pitched game tonight from both sides," Astros pitching coach Brent Strom said after Game 4, per Tom Verducci of Sports Illustrated. "I just want to know why? Why in the world would the baseballs in the World Series be different? Because you can see the difference. You can feel it. I don't understand it at all."

"[Game 3] starter Yu [Darvish] noticed the difference," Dodgers pitching coach Rick Honeycutt added, via Verducci. "He told me the balls were slicker and he had trouble throwing the slider because of how slick they were."

Astros pitcher Justin Verlander and Verducci himself, who compared a World Series and regular-season ball, concurred.

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"The World Series ball is slicker. No doubt," Verlander said. "I'm telling you, we're in here signing [World Series] balls before the game, and it's hard to get the ink on the ball sometimes. You know when you sign a receipt at Starbucks, and if you don't hold the paper down with your hand, the pen just slides across the paper and the ink doesn't stick to it? That's what it's like sometimes trying to sign these balls. That's how slick the leather is."

Dodgers starter Rich Hill told Tyler Kepner of the New York Times he thought the balls felt the same.

Further, as Kepner noted, "Major League Baseball has consistently denied that the balls were different in the regular season, when major leaguers smashed a record 6,105 home runs. A baseball official who was not authorized to speak publicly said Sunday that the World Series balls were manufactured in July with the same process used for regular-season balls, and that they fell within designated specifications."

The matter isn't settled. But there's enough smoke and fire to call this a smoldering thing. The story isn't about to die.

Homers and allegedly juiced balls aren't the only lightning rods in this series.

There's the controversy surrounding Astros first baseman Yuli Gurriel, who sparked outrage in Game 3 when he made a racist gesture in the dugout after homering off Darvish.

As USA Today's Bob Nightengale was the first to report, MLB suspended Gurriel for the first five games on the 2018 season, but he avoided missing any World Series action.

"There is complete unanimity—me, my office, both owners, both clubs and the MLBPA—that there is no place in our game for the behavior or any behavior like the behavior we witnessed [Friday] night," Commissioner Rob Manfred said, per MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince. "There is no excuse or explanation that makes that type of behavior acceptable."

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Gurriel launched a three-run homer in Sunday's Game 5, a tainted moment for all but the biggest Astros apologists.

Lest it seem like this World Series has been all about hand-wringing and brow-furrowing, it has also been an epic bout between the lines.

Game 2, an 11-inning barnburner that the 'Stros won 7-6, was a contest for the ages, as Bleacher Report's Zachary D. Rymer noted.

Game 5 was likewise one for the history books, especially if you love scoring.

This series has pitted the game's two best teams against one another, and it has lived up to its lofty pedigree.

There has been dissent, uncertainty, pulse-pounding action and enough balls cascading through the night to satiate even the most homer-hungry enthusiast.

The Astros are one win away from their first title in franchise history, but don't assume that script will play out. If anything, expect the unexpected.

For now, catch your breath, baseball fans. Then prepare to lose it all over again.

All statistics current as of Sunday and courtesy of MLB.com.