World Series: Juan Soto, Nationals defeat Astros for 1-0 lead

Oct. 22 (UPI) -- Juan Soto came up clutch with three RBIs as the wild-card Washington Nationals earned a 5-4 upset win over the Houston Astros on Tuesday at Minute Maid Park to take a 1-0 lead in the World Series opener.

The Nationals earned their first World Series victory in franchise history after breaking Astros ace Gerrit Cole's 19-game winning streak. Washington got a game-tying solo home run from the 20-year-old Soto, who had a two-run double four innings later that provided the game-deciding runs.

Soto finished with three hits and a stolen base against the Astros. Ryan Zimmerman also homered to back Nationals starter Max Scherzer to the win.

The Astros jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning after Yuli Gurriel doubled to deep left. Jose Altuve and George Springer each scored, putting Scherzer in an early hole.

Zimmerman belted a solo homer in the second and Soto smashed an opposite-field shot onto the train tracks high above the wall in left field during the fourth to tie the score at two runs apiece.

In the fifth inning, Adam Eaton singled to right to score Kurt Suzuki. Shortly later, Soto smacked a two-run double to left field, boosting the Nationals' advantage to 5-2.

Astros outfielder George Springer sparked a comeback with a solo home run to center in the seventh inning. In the eighth, he came through again with an RBI double to cut Houston's deficit to 5-4.

Nationals closer Sean Doolittle pitched 1 1/3 innings to earn the save, giving Washington a surprising Game 1 victory on the road.

Scherzer allowed two earned runs on five hits across five innings. He struck out seven and walked three.

Cole gave up five earned runs on eight hits across seven innings. He recorded six strikeouts and walked one.

Game 2 of the best-of-seven series is scheduled for Wednesday night in Houston.