who pitched the first game of the world series 2017
2017 World Series Chris Taylor hit a home run for the Dodgers on Keuchel's first pitch of the game. It was the third home run to leadoff a game in Dodgers postseason history (following Davey Lopes in 1978 World Series and Carl Crawford in 2013 NLDS).[52] Alex Bregman hit a tying solo home run for the Astros in the fourth inning. In the sixth inning, Justin Turner hit a go-ahead two-run home run for the Dodgers. Turner tied Duke Snider for most career runs batted in (RBIs) in Dodgers postseason history with 26.[53] Kershaw struck out 11 in seven innings pitched with no walks and only three hits allowed while Keuchel allowed three runs on six hits in ​6 2⁄3 innings. Brandon Morrow pitched a scoreless eighth and Kenley Jansen earned the save.[54] The two-hour, 28-minute game was the shortest World Series contest since Game 4 in 1992.[55]
2016 World Series The 2016 World Series was the 112th edition of Major League Baseball's championship series, a best-of-seven playoff between the National League (NL) champion Chicago Cubs and the American League (AL) champion Cleveland Indians, the first meeting of those franchises in postseason history. The Indians had home-field advantage because the AL had won the 2016 All-Star Game.[2][3][4] It was also the last World Series to have home-field advantage determined by the All-Star Game results; beginning in 2017, home-field advantage is now awarded to the team with the better record.
Boston Red Sox Boston, which finished last in the American League East with a 69–93 record in 2012–26 games behind the Yankees, became the 11th team in major league history to go from worst in the division to first the next season when it clinched the A.L. East division title on September 21, 2013.[52] Many credit the team's turnaround with the hiring of manager John Farrell, the former Red Sox pitching coach under Terry Francona from 2007 to 2010. As a former member of the staff, he had the respect of influential players such as Lester, Pedroia, and Ortiz.[53] But there were other moves made in the offseason by general manager Ben Cherington who targeted "character" players to fill the team's needs. These acquisitions included veteran catcher David Ross, Jonny Gomes, Mike Napoli, and Shane Victorino. While some questioned these players as "re-treads", it was clear that Cherington was trying to move past 2011–2012 by bringing in "clubhouse players". Essential to the turnaround, however, was the pitching staff. With ace veteran John Lackey coming off Tommy John surgery and both Jon Lester and Clay Buchholz returning to their prior form, this allowed the team to rely less on their bullpen. Everything seemed in danger of collapsing, however, when both closers, Joel Hanrahan and Andrew Bailey, went down early with season-ending injuries. Farrell gave the closing job to Koji Uehara on June 21 who delivered with a 1.09 ERA and an MLB record 0.565 WHIP.[54] On September 11, the 37-year-old right-hander set a new Red Sox record when he retired 33 straight batters.[55] Other reasons include the trade deadline acquisition of pitcher Jake Peavy when the Red Sox were in second place in the AL East, the depth of the bench with players such as Mike Carp and rookies Jackie Bradley, Jr. and Xander Bogaerts, and the re-emergence of players such as Will Middlebrooks and Daniel Nava.[56] On September 28, 2013, the team secured home field advantage throughout the American League playoffs when their closest competition, the Oakland Athletics, lost.[57] The next day, the team finished the season going 97–65, the best record in the American League and tied with the St. Louis Cardinals for the best record in baseball.[58] They proceeded to defeat the St. Louis Cardinals in the 2013 World Series, four games to two.[59] The Red Sox became the first team since the 1991 Minnesota Twins to win the World Series a year after finishing in last place, and the second overall. The 2012 Red Sox' .426 winning percentage was the lowest for a team in a season prior to a World Series championship.
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