Game 3 of the World Series was one of those games, I suspect, that will forever be talked about by diehard fans as a low-key classic World Series game, despite the fact that it wasn’t a deciding game, it didn’t have a walk-off hit, and there weren’t very many runs.
That said, Atlanta’s 2-0 win to take a 2-1 Series lead over Houston had a little bit of everything: Terrific defense from each team, some incredible individual pitching performances (including the Braves carrying a no-hitter into the eighth inning), and so many of those tough managerial decisions that fans delight in debating. Did Atlanta manager Brian Snitker pull Ian Anderson — who hadn’t allowed a hit through five — too early? Did Dusty Baker do the same with Luis Garcia? What about the constant bullpen levers they had to keep pulling? It reminded you why this game is so riveting, so maddening, and so endlessly compelling.
And we haven’t even gotten to the hard part yet.
After all, this was just the first of a brutal three-games-in-three-days stretch for two teams that both already are, uh, just about to run out of pitching. The Braves came into this Series knowing they were going to have to do a bullpen game in Game 4, but the injury to Charlie Morton in Game 1 assures they’re going to have to do one in Game 5 as well. The Astros are starting Zack Greinke in Game 4, a pitcher who might be in the Hall of Fame someday but right now is a guy who hasn’t faced more than nine batters in a game since Sept. 19. (And their Game 5 starter, Framber Valdez, gave up five runs in Game 1.) Oh, and both teams used a combined 11 pitchers in Game 5, all of whom had every single pitch they threw be classified as “high-stress.” And they have to do this twice!
Friday night’s Game 3 felt like a masterclass in managing, pitching and defense, a World Series game played and mapped out at the highest level. So let’s now do it again. And again.
— Will Leitch
This morning’s top news
Braves nearly unhittable, seize 2-1 World Series lead
Anderson in rare air with 5 no-hit innings
Astros muster just 2 hits on ‘uneventful night’
Crowd noise affects no-hit bid: ‘It is so loud’
d’Arnaud’s big day: Doughnuts and a key HR
Baker plays the long game with bullpen
Snitker’s ‘pen plan works for Atlanta again
Greinke ‘super valuable’ to start Game 4
World Series Game 4 FAQ (8 ET on FOX)
(1-2)
World Series Gm 4
Houston @ Atlanta
Truist Park | 8:09 pm ET
(2-1)
Projected Lineups:
Zack Greinke, RHP #21
11-6 | 4.16 ERA | 120 K
Postseason: 0-0 | 7.71 | 1K
Braves starting pitcher TBD
1. J. Altuve, 2B
2. M. Brantley, RF
3. A. Bregman, 3B
4. Y. Alvarez, LF
5. C. Correa, SS
6. K. Tucker, CF
7. Y. Gurriel, 1B
8. M. Maldonado, C
9. Z. Greinke, P
1. E. Rosario, LF
2. F. Freeman, 1B
3. O. Albies, 2B
4. A. Riley, 3B
5. J. Soler, RF
6. A. Duvall, CF
7. T. d’Arnaud, C
8. D. Swanson, SS
9. TBD, P
Who’s hot and who’s not?
Braves: Travis d’Arnaud has gone 5-for-12 with two homers through the first three games of the World Series. Eddie Rosario has hit .420 with a 1.153 OPS this postseason. Freddie Freeman has a .954 OPS through 12 playoff games.
Astros: The Astros, who are hitting .198 through three games of the World Series, have only one hitter you would consider hot. That’s Michael Brantley, who’s 5-for-13. Kyle Tucker and Yuli Gurriel are both 3-for-11. Then there’s the abundance of cold bats: Jose Altuve is 2-for-13, Alex Bregman is 1-for-9, Yordan Alvarez is 1-for-8 and Carlos Correa is 1-for-10.
A few more things to see …
Aaron’s spirit lives on in World Series tribute
The great Hank Aaron’s spirit pervades this World Series taking place in the year of his passing.
Bregman lays down a bunt (from the dugout!)
Who says bunting is a lost art?
Revisiting Bush’s ‘perfect’ 1st pitch after 9/11
Todd Greene, the Yankees’ backup catcher in the 2001 World Series, looks back on the biggest pitch he ever caught, 20 years ago today.
Pujols says time to retire hasn’t come yet
Albert Pujols, who is playing in the Dominican Winter League this offseason, could return for his 22nd season in 2022.
The baseball diehards skipping sleep for the World Series
Despite the time difference, fans of the Astros and Braves in the United Kingdom are hanging on every pitch of the Fall Classic.
World Series Game 3 Recap
Today’s Trivia Question
Who holds the record for longest no-hit bid by a rookie in a postseason game?
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