All of the action thus far in the MLB playoffs has led to this, a matchup between the Atlanta Braves and the Houston Astros in the 2021 World Series. This latest edition of the Fall Classic will get its best-of-seven series underway on Oct. 26, with things starting off in Houston.
The Braves made their way to the World Series by winning the National League East, then defeating the Milwaukee Brewers in four games in the NLDS and the Los Angeles Dodgers in six games in the NLCS. This is the first time that Atlanta has been to the World Series since the ‘90s, when they made five appearances, the last one coming in 1999 (they won one of the five series).
It’s becoming old hat for the Astros to reach the World Series. This is the third time in five years that the Astros have reached the Fall Classic, previously winning the championship in 2017. However, as all baseball fans know, those appearances have a bit of controversy, as the Astros were revealed to have used sign stealing strategies for which their manager during that time, A.J. Hinch, was suspended and ultimately let go from the team. The Astros keep on rolling though and are back vying for their second-ever World Series title.
Read on to get the full schedule for the 2021 World Series, as well as a brief matchup preview and how to watch every pitch of the series.
Braves vs Astros World Series schedule
Here is the complete seven-game schedule for the Braves vs Astros World Series. (* denotes “if necessary”)
Oct. 26: Braves 6, Astros 2
Oct. 27: Braves 2, Astros 7
Oct. 29: Astros 0, Braves 2
Oct. 30: Astros 2, Braves 3
Oct. 31: Astros 9, Braves 5
Nov. 2: Braves 7, Astros 0
Braves vs Astros matchup preview
What will win out in this World Series matchup between the Atlanta Braves and the Houston Astros? Good pitching or good hitting?
The good pitching team is the Atlanta Braves. In their first series against the Brewers, the Braves pitching staff allowed a total of six runs in four games, including two shutouts. Then against the Dodgers, the Braves held one of the most dangerous offensive teams to just two runs in three of their four wins. Atlanta’s main trio of starting pitchers — Max Fried, Charlie Morton and Ian Anderson — have all posted an ERA under 4, with Anderson leading the way with an ERA of 2.25. The Braves best pitcher though has been reliever Tyler Matzek, who in 10 innings pitched has given up four hits, two earned runs (1.74 ERA) and recorded 17 strikeouts. Morton has been named the Game 1 starter for the World Series.
The Braves offense hasn’t been letting the pitching do all the work though. They scored 28 runs in the NLCS against the Dodgers, with left fielder Eddie Rosario leading the way. Throughout the postseason Rosario leads the Braves with 18 hits, a .474 batting average, three home runs and 11 RBIs. No other Brave is hitting above .300, though Freddie Freeman and Joc Pederson have each also contributed three home runs a piece.
The Astros have been putting on more of an offensive show with their run to the World Series. In their six-game ALCS against the Boston Red Sox the Astros scored 35 runs; this following a 31-run output in their four-game series against the Chicago White Sox. Three of the Astros everyday starters are hitting above .300 this postseason (Michael Brantley, Yuli Gurriel and Yordan Alvarez), while Kyle Tucker has been coming up with the big hits, knocking four home runs and 15 RBIs. The Astros top trio of Jose Altuve, Alex Bregman and Carols Correa have been average, but are always dangerous to get hot or come up with a timely hit.
Pitching for the Astros has been less reliable. Framber Valdez is getting the Game 1 start in the World Series, and in three starts this postseason he’s had just one quality start and an overall ERA of 4.20; however, he was fantastic in his lost outing against the Red Sox in Game 5 of the ALCS. Perhaps the Astros best pitcher, Lance McCullers Jr., won’t be on the roster for the World Series, as he was injured during the ALDS. No other Astros starter has an ERA below 7.71.
The Astros had the better record during the regular season (95-67) and are getting home field advantage in the World Series. The Astros are the betting favorite to win the series.
How to watch Braves vs Astros World Series in the U.S.
There won’t be any hopping around to cable networks for the 2021 World Series, as each and every game of the Braves vs Astros series will be broadcasted on Fox. Fans will be able to watch the game through their local Fox station (check local listings for channel) as long as they have either a traditional cable/satellite pay-TV service subscription, a TV antenna to receive local broadcast signals or a subscription to a live TV streaming service that offers Fox, including FuboTV, Hulu with Live TV, Sling TV and YouTube TV.
Those who subscribe to a cable/satellite pay-TV service or a live TV streaming service can also use their login information to watch the World Series through the Watch Fox Sports app, or via www.foxsports.com, if they are not able to watch the game on a TV.
How to watch Braves vs Astros World Series in the U.K.
Even though baseball is America’s pastime, any fans of the game over in the U.K. can still tune in for playoff and World Series action. BT Sport will broadcast the games to its subscribers through its ESPN subchannel.
You will need to be a BT Sports subscriber to watch the network’s coverage of the MLB playoffs. A monthly subscription is available at £25.
How to watch Braves vs Astros World Series from anywhere in the world
You don’t have to be in the U.S. (or even the U.K.) to watch the 2021 MLB playoffs from first pitch to the last out. MLB has shared all of the international broadcasters covering the games, but if you’ve cut the cord entirely and none of these options are immediately available to you, there’s still the option of a VPN, or virtual private network.
A VPN is designed to route network traffic through a specific set of servers in a specific country, allowing viewers to watch content on an encrypted feed over a computer.
