Following Thursday’s day off from the World Series, where we all got to recuperate in whatever way works best for us after the 11-inning dinger extravaganza that was Game 2, the Fall Classic returns on Friday night.
The World Series shifts to Houston for Game 3
Friday’s Say Hey, Baseball looks at Game 3, and all of the surprising manager news from Thursday.
Photo by Harry How/Getty Images
The series has shifted to Houston and is now, for all intents and purposes, a five-game event where the Astros have home-field advantage thanks to winning Game 2 in Los Angeles. The Dodgers can get it back in a hurry with a Game 3 (or Game 4 or Game 5) victory, of course — these things are pretty fluid. The Dodgers have to win at least one of those games to get the series back to LA anyway, so “not having home-field advantage” is kind of secondary to “win or you stop getting chances to.”
Listen, we know it’s tough to catch up on everything happening in the baseball world each morning. Trying to find all of it while on your way to work or sitting at your desk just isn’t easy. It’s OK, though. Subscribe to our daily MLB newsletter and let us do the heavy lifting for you each morning to find the things you need to see.
Game 3’s matchup is Yu Darvish vs. Lance McCullers, the latter of whom earned a four-inning save in Game 7 of the ALCS against the Yankees. On the Dodgers, Darvish has had moments where he’s unhittable and ones where... well, he’s the opposite. He’s pretty familiar with the Astros, though, having faced this former AL West rival 14 times in his career already, and he has more than acquitted himself in those starts.
Of course, the old Astros aren’t these Astros, even if a few of the names are the same. And a team that can get to Kenley Jansen, as Houston did in Game 2, can get to anyone.
The Astros haven’t lost a home game during the postseason yet, as their only defeat against the Red Sox came at Fenway Park, and their three losses to the Yankees were all in New York. Don’t get too excited about that tidbit, ‘Stros fans: The Dodgers hadn’t lost a home game during the postseason yet, either, and then the Astros handed them an extra-innings L on Wednesday.
That’s why they play the games, you know. Hey, that should be a saying.
- Did you get a chance to read Grant Brisbee’s feature on Game 2 of the World Series? If not, here’s your chance!
- The Astros’ and Dodgers’ depth and versatility are on display in the World Series.
- First pitch will now be at 8:20 p.m. ET for all remaining World Series games, probably because MLB hasn’t hit its previous 8:09 marker yet.
- TMZ published a story saying Astros’ manager A.J. Hinch got into a bar fight after Game 1, a claim that Hinch denied.
- The Yankees didn’t fire Joe Girardi. They just decided not to bring him back now that his contract is expiring. It’s basically the same thing.
- Girardi wasn’t a perfect manager, but as Pinstripe Alley writes, he deserved better.
- Even with the way Girardi was let go, he’ll someday be viewed as one of the better managers in Yankees history.
- Fish Stripes wonders if the Marlins and Yankees could swap managers.
- Girardi might sound like an obvious choice for the Nationals’ vacant manager gig, but Dave Martinez might be the front-runner in D.C.
- Late-season trade acquisition Justin Upton opting into his contract would be the best-case scenario for the Angels.
- Bob Nightengale thinks the Giants are going to end up with either Giancarlo Stanton or J.D. Martinez. Grant Brisbee isn’t so sure.
How short is Jose Altuve really? A very serious investigation
See More:
