Another day, another Game 7 in the 2023 MLB playoffs. And this time, we got a result that shocks the sport: The Arizona Diamondbacks are going to the World Series!
On Monday night, the Texas Rangers rocked the Houston Astros at Minute Maid Park to complete their American League Championship Series comeback, ousting the defending World Series champions in the process. Tonight, the D-backs downed the defending NL champion Philadelphia Phillies in a dominant 4-2 win in Citizens Bank Park, the Phillies' previously impenetrable fortress.
From lineups to live updates and analysis during the game, here's everything you need to know about Arizona's shocking win -- one that earned them a trip to the World Series.
Key links: Full playoffs schedule and results
Takeaway
They did it. They actually did it. The Arizona Diamondbacks, an 84-win team in the regular season and underdogs in every round of the playoffs, came into Philadelphia, where the Phillies were undefeated this postseason, and beat them twice. The latter, an exquisitely played Game 7 by Arizona that ended in a 4-2 victory, embodied these Diamondbacks. They hit, ran, pitched and caught with precision. They stymied the powerful Phillies. And now they are going to the second World Series in franchise history and their first since winning it in 2001.
Philadelphia's season ends in ignominy. Had Craig Kimbrel not blown Games 3 and 4 ... had Aaron Nola pitched better in Game 6 ... had Bryce Harper and Trea Turner not gone 0-for-4 in Game 7 -- had any number of things happened, the outcome might've been different. But that's the thing. They did happen. This is real. The Diamondbacks and the Texas Rangers are in the World Series. Game 1 is Friday in Arlington. And for all that series might lack in intrigue, it features two undeniably hot teams that chose the right time to play their best. --Jeff Passan