HOUSTON – Juan Soto and the Washington Nationals quickly derailed the Cole Express.
A 20-year-old prodigy with a passion for the big moment, Soto homered onto the train tracks high above the left-field wall and hit a two-run double as the Nationals tagged Gerrit Cole and the Houston Astros 5-4 on Tuesday night in the best-of-seven World Series opener.
“After the first at-bat, I just said, ‘It’s another baseball game,’ ” Soto said. “In the first at-bat, I’m not going to lie, I was a little bit shaking in my legs.”
Not even a history-making home run by postseason star George Springer — and another drive that nearly tied it in the eighth inning — could deter Washington.