GDT: 10/25/08 - WS GAME 3 - PHI (1) @ TB (1) - 8:00 PM ET

GDT: 10/25/08 - WS GAME 3 - PHI (1) @ TB (1) - 8:00 PM ET


10/24/08 4:50 PM ET
Series hype picks up in Game 3
Scene changes, but Rays, Phillies have same goal in sight

By Mike Bauman / MLB.com

PHILADELPHIA -- There were no surprises in the first two games of the 2008 World Series. But the plot thickens from here.

The Tampa Bay Rays and the Philadelphia Phillies are in Pennsylvania now, tied at 1. They have done the expected things so far. Cole Hamels won the opener for the Phillies, just as he had won his first three starts in the
postseason. In Game 2, Tampa Bay's James Shields outpitched Brett Myers, just as the numbers suggested that he would.

What did these two clubs find out about each other in the first two games? The Phillies discovered that the Rays were multitalented and multifaceted.
"I think they've got very good athletes," Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said after Game 2. "The balls they hit on the ground, they're hard to double up. And they can cover the outfield. The guy in center field [B.J. Upton] looks like he can really cover some ground. They're athletes and they can play. Yeah, I mean, they've got a good club."

The Rays, meanwhile, discovered in Game 1 what the National League postseason entrants already knew -- that beating Hamels in this October is a very unlikely proposition. On the plus side, Tampa Bay found that it could retire Philadelphia with runners in scoring position. In the first two games, the Phillies were 1-for-28 with runners in scoring position.

This may be a temporary condition. As Rays manager Joe Maddon cautioned on Thursday night: "That's really kind of over the top, because the Phillies are very dangerous. But we've had really good pitching."

A 1-1 record after two games of a World Series does not, of course, lead to snap conclusions. What this has meant over the history of the Fall Classic is that roughly 75 percent of the series that have started 1-1 have lasted six games or more.

That's what the evidence suggests here, too. Philadelphia is going to win at least the two games that Hamels pitches.

The pitching matchups in this World Series, when Hamels is not starting, appear to favor the Rays. But the overall bullpen edge belongs to the Phillies. Setup man Ryan Madson has been terrific. Closer Brad Lidge has been perfect -- 47-for-47 on save opportunities, including the postseason. The Rays have improved in late relief with the emergence of rookie David Price, who was asked to get seven outs in Game 2 and eventually delivered.

Game 3, scheduled for Saturday night at Citizens Bank Park, specifically offers a fascinating matchup. Matt Garza of the Rays just punched his ticket for postseason success with a brilliant Game 7 performance against the Red Sox in the American League Championship Series. That, combined with a Game 3 victory, justifiably made him the MVP of the ALCS.

So here is a young and indisputably talented pitcher on something of a postseason roll. On the Phillies' side of the argument is lefty Jamie Moyer.

Moyer's performance may be the biggest variable to date in this World Series. This is a man who has won 246 games, 16 of them this season. But in his last start, Game 3 of the NLCS against the Dodgers, he was pounded, giving up six earned runs in 1 1/3 innings. The Phillies have lost just three games in this postseason. Two of those losses went to Moyer.

Which Moyer is it going to be? Is he going to be the master of his craft, pitching with typical guts and guile? Or is he going to be the guy who got tagged by a Dodgers club that couldn't find a way to punish the rest of the Phillies' staff?

Moyer is 45, but age has been no barrier to his success. Garza is 24. What do they have in common? This will be the first World Series start for each of them. This start has even more significance for Moyer, because he is a Pennsylvania native.

Asked on Friday to analyze his struggles in this postseason, Moyer responded: "They're behind me. I have no idea. I'm moving forward."

But the very fact that Moyer is getting this start is the strongest possible vote of confidence from Manuel. This is obviously a crucial World Series juncture, and the manager is putting his faith in the veteran lefty.

"He was probably our most consistent pitcher at one time this year," Manuel said on Friday. "He won 16 ballgames for us. He made all of his appearances in rotation. He even pitched on short rest at times.

"And look, he's had some big games. He's pitched two games in the playoffs, and they hadn't been very good for him. But at the same time, I've still got confidence in him getting guys out. He showed he can get them out."

To win this Fall Classic, the Rays need to defeat the Phillies pitchers who are not named Hamels. To win this World Series, the Phillies need winning performances from starting pitchers who are also not named Hamels. The Rays took a round of this argument in Game 2, but Game 3 will be a different chapter -- in a different city, in a different ballpark, in a different environment, with no roof, with rain in the forecast.


Mike Bauman is a national columnist for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

STARTING LINEUPS:




Tampa Bay AVG
Iwamura, 2B .429
Upton, CF .250
Pena, 1B .000
Longoria, 3B .000
Crawford, LF .125
Navarro, C .333
Gross, RF .000
Bartlett, SS .667
Garza, P .000



Philadelphia AVG
Rollins, SS .000
Werth, RF .333
Utley, 2B .250
Howard, 1B .222
Burrell, LF .000
Victorino, CF .500
Feliz, 3B .286
Ruiz, C .400
Moyer, P .000

59 degrees at Game Time

South Winds at 11mph


It will rain throughout the day in Philly; Over half an inch is possible through 5pm EST Saturday



However; the rain should move out by 6pm

LINEUPS POSTED

Lots of rain in Philly yet

10/25/08 6:42 PM ET
Rain could delay start of Game 3
Increased precipitation has MLB officials monitoring situation

By Bryan Hoch / MLB.com

PHILADELPHIA -- A strong storm system continued to pass over Citizens Bank Park during the afternoon hours on Saturday, increasing the likelihood that the start of Game 3 of the World Series will be delayed by rain.

Though beginning at the scheduled 8:35 p.m. ET start time appears to be unlikely, on-field members of the stadium grounds crew expressed optimism that the contest -- the first World Series game scheduled in Philadelphia since 1993 -- will be played after a delay on Saturday.

The tarpaulin was covering the playing field as of 5:45 p.m. ET, as cracks of bats meeting balls echoed in the underground batting cages. Phillies head groundskeeper Mike Boekholder was said to be reviewing hour-by-hour radar data presented to the club as a system passes north from the Washington, D.C. area.

Joe Garagiola Jr., Major League Baseball's senior vice president of baseball operations, told MLB.com that Game 3 has not yet been officially delayed. But both managers, Tampa Bay's Joe Maddon and Philadelphia's Charlie Manuel, said in their pregame press conference that the clubs did not expect to start at 8:35 p.m.

"We have gotten updates. From what I understand, it's not going to start on time, but possibly relatively close," Maddon said."The proverbial window is like a 9:30 or so window, although this sounds like it may be a big bay window, where you actually could play a baseball game. They're saying after this weather clears out, it should be good for the rest of the night."

"They say we're going to be a little late, but we're going to play," Manuel said. "They say once it's out of here, it's out."

Winds of more than 30 miles per hour whipped the flags in center field intermittently, followed by periods of calm, though gates opened as planned at 5:30 p.m. The temperature remained in the mid 60s three hours before the scheduled first pitch, with a low in the high 40s forecasted for Saturday.

Corey Magee, a meteorologist for Weatherbug -- a service that supplies Major League Baseball with updates -- wrote on the service's Web site that "while fans should bring umbrellas and rain coats, the main area of soggy weather should move away sometime near the start of the game. Scattered light showers will then linger after the cold front passes through."

The National Weather Service's official forecast as of 3:39 p.m. called for "rain and possibly a thunderstorm, mainly before 9 p.m.," in Philadelphia, adding, "Some of the storms could produce gusty winds and heavy rain."

Weather.com lists a 100 percent chance of precipitation at 8 p.m., dropping to 90 percent at 9 p.m., 70 percent at 10 p.m. and 50 percent at 11 p.m.

Maddon said that the comforts of Citizens Bank Park were helping the Rays cope; he joked that he might want to put starter Matt Garza in "a padded room ... so he can go there and bounce around for a bit," but reliever J.P. Howell was passing the time watching the college football game between Texas and Oklahoma State.

"You're fortunate to have a delay like this in this ballpark," Maddon said. "If you're in Fenway [Park], in that clubhouse, it gets kind of annoying. The clubhouse is maybe half this size. And when you have all the amenities, and you get yourself a nice cheese steak while you're waiting or watch a game on the tube. ... This kind of facility ameliorates that situation a bit and permits you to get through the moment.

"Knowing that it's not going to start on time helps our guys a bit. If there's a dramatic shift in that, they'll actually like that. For right now, we'll be OK."

The Series, tied at one game apiece, will go at least five games, meaning all three games scheduled for Philadelphia will be played.

Ultimately, the decision on when and whether to play will be in the hands of Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig. During the regular season, pregame postponements are controlled by the home club, and then after a game begins, by the umpires. Selig will make those decisions during the World Series.

The field at Citizens Bank Park is playable in a steady rain, the Phillies assistant groundskeeper said after workouts on Friday. The system in place allows the grass to drain and a sand-like substance is used to keep the dirt portion of the infield from saturating. As a backup, the system is equipped with a vacuum that pumps tons of water out of the drainage pipes.

Forecast outlets are calling for a clear day and night on Sunday. Monday and Tuesday are shaping up as cooler days, with highs in the low 50s but very little chance of any rain.

In the event of the first World Series rainout since Game 4 of the 2006 World Series at St. Louis between the Tigers and Cardinals, Game 3 will take place on Sunday night.

Game 4, originally scheduled for Sunday, would be moved to Monday night. Monday's original Game 5 would be moved to Tuesday night, meaning there will be no travel day and the possibility of playing five days in a row if the Series goes the full seven games.

If the game is rained out Saturday, tickets for Game 3 would be honored on Sunday instead, Game 4 on Monday and Game 5 on Tuesday.

Games 6 and 7, if necessary, will take place as originally scheduled next Wednesday and Thursday nights in the domed confines of Tropicana Field at St. Petersburg.

When the Phillies were last in the World Series in 1993, the third game between Philadelphia and the Blue Jays began after a rain delay of 1 hour and 12 minutes.

Bryan Hoch is a reporter for MLB.com. National reporter Barry M. Bloom and reporter Matthew Leach contributed to this story. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

I'm watching "House" until the game starts.

Im watching the Bama game.


Go Crimson Tide!

Clemson's better though.

WHY isn't the World Series played only on an indoor field??!?! The weather is so unstable in October!

sorry...kinda blue...had to work all day. Guess I should just be glad I have a job.

What the is that music that they're playing while announcing the players?

Fishy-fish song was NOT cool...........
GO RAYS

that was all to undermine them! so NOT cool

laprimamirala wrote:

Fishy-fish song was NOT cool...........
GO RAYS

Is that what they were singing?

National Anthem was pretty well done by what's-her-name.

bobrob2004 wrote:

laprimamirala wrote:

Fishy-fish song was NOT cool...........
GO RAYS

Is that what they were singing?

that was b..a..d!!!

top of the 1st
J Moyer pitching for the Phillies

Iwamura - flies out

Upton - grounds out

Pena - walk

Longoria -

stupid thing to do! That's NEVER been done in Detroit! Very unprofessional! Teams should pick their own intro song!

bottom of 1st
M. Garza pitching for the Rays

Rollins - singles

laprimamirala wrote:

stupid thing to do! That's NEVER been done in Detroit! Very unprofessional! Teams should pick their own intro song!

I agree.

Werth - walk

calm down Garza! Throw strikes

dang Philly fans booing the Rays every time they come to bat!

wild pitch moves runners to 2nd and 3rd

Utley - grounds out, run scores

Phillies 1-0

the pitching mound is a muddy mess

Howard -

Burrell - pops out

end of 1st

Phillies 1-0