Likely and Unlikely Heroes Propel Astros to Huge Win in World Series Game 4

The oft-cited notion that you can't predict baseball is typically true, yet it was only half-true in Game 4 of the 2019 World Series.

Anyone could have predicted that Alex Bregman would lead the Houston Astros to a series-tying victory over the Washington Nationals. Indeed, fellow Astros superstar Carlos Correa warned everyone after Friday's Game 3 that Bregman was "gonna go off" in Saturday's Game 4.

As if on cue, he collected three hits and five RBI during Houston's 8-1 romp, including four on a grand slam off Fernando Rodney in the seventh inning that effectively put the game to rest:

Bregman has already won a World Series ring and played in two All-Star Games, and he'll probably add an American League MVP to his resume after racking up a 1.015 OPS, 41 home runs and an American League-best 8.4 wins above replacement in 2019, according to Baseball Reference.

What happened at Nationals Park on Saturday night nonetheless feels like a signature moment for the 25-year-old third baseman. Right now, it's Game 4 of the 2019 World Series. In time, it might be better known as "The Alex Bregman Game."

Not to be overlooked, however, is the help he got from some unusual suspects.

Heck, Bregman might not even have the inside track to the World Series MVP. It might belong to 35-year-old catcher Robinson Chirinos, who followed his homer in Game 3 with a two-run shot off Nationals ace Patrick Corbin in Game 4:

A catcher going yard in back-to-back World Series games? It's about as rare as you'd expect. According to MLB.com's Sarah Langs, Chirinos is only the sixth backstop to ever do it.

Not bad for a guy who didn't get his first big break in the majors until he was 30. For that matter, Chirinos is only with the Astros because the Texas Rangers declined to pick up his $4.5 million option for 2019.

Yet the spotlight Chirinos is standing under suits him well enough. He's been a steady presence behind the plate since 2014, and only six catchers have clubbed more homers over the last three seasons.

"Just never give up," Chirinos told Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal after the game. "To the kids in the minor leagues, just continue to believe, be your best, you never know. Many people said I was never going to make it to the big leagues!"

But while Bregman and Chirinos made the most noise, the degree to which rookie right-hander Jose Urquidy silenced Washington's bats in Game 4 is perhaps an equally important reason the World Series is all tied up.

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Urquidy was tabbed for Game 4 only because the Astros had nobody better to hand the ball to after using aces Gerrit Cole, Justin Verlander and Zack Greinke in Games 1, 2 and 3. And if Urquidy flopped, Houston's relievers would be in for a second straight long night after handling 4.1 innings in Game 3.

But Urquidy didn't flop. He gave the Astros five scoreless innings, with two hits and no walks allowed and four strikeouts on only 67 pitches.

"Tonight he showed he's a great pitcher, and he did it on the biggest stage there is," Astros center fielder Jake Marisnick told MLB Network Radio after Game 4.

Per ESPN Stats & Information, Urquidy's outing was another of Game 4's rarities:

Urquidy wasn't even one of the Astros' 30 best prospects before the 2019 season, according to Baseball America. But the 24-year-old quickly began making waves with big strikeout numbers in the minors, notably with a boost from a post-Tommy John surgery velocity spike.

True to form, Urquidy brought the good stuff in Game 4. Nationals hitters had no answer for his fastball, which maxed out at 96.3 mph, or his devastating slider/changeup combination.

Now the Astros just need Cole and Verlander to lead the way to their second championship in three years in Games 5 and 6, the latter of which will take place back home at Minute Maid Park. Should one of them falter, Greinke is standing by for a possible Game 7.

Meanwhile, the Astros offense suddenly looks like, well, the Astros offense again. Specifically, its slump with runners in scoring position has ended:

• ALCS Game 1 through World Series Game 2: .127 AVG
• World Series Games 3 and 4: .391 AVG

But lest anyone start shoveling dirt onto them, the Nationals aren't dead yet.

They'll counter Cole and Verlander with Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg in Games 5 and 6. That's a fair fight on paper, and it bears mentioning that the same pitching matchups went Washington's way in Games 1 and 2 at Houston.

The Nationals offense might also still have life left in it despite scoring just two runs over the last two games. Anthony Rendon and Juan Soto must be handled with utmost caution. And if it is to be a clutch-hitting contest, the Nationals' regular-season and postseason credentials suggest they're up for it.

Ultimately, all that's been determined after four games is that a team that won an MLB-best 107 games and a team that won an MLB-high-tying 74 games after May 23 are a good match for each other.

That's to say it's a toss-up as to who'll be the first to win two more games.

Stats courtesy of Baseball Reference, FanGraphs, Baseball Savant and ESPN.com.