October 26, 2018

World Series 3: Dodgers 3, Red Sox 2 (18)

Red Sox - 000 000 010 000 100 000 - 2  7  1
Dodgers - 001 000 000 000 100 001 - 3 11  1


The clock on my desk read 3:30 AM when Max Muncy hit an opposite field home run to left-center in the bottom of the eighteenth inning, giving the Dodgers a 3-2 win over the Red Sox.

This was the longest World Series game of all-time, both by time (7:20) and by innings, smashing the previous record of 14, first set in 1916 when the Red Sox bested the Dodgers. According to a tweet from Stats by STATS, this game lasted 15 minutes longer than the entire 1939 World Series, when the Yankees swept the Reds in four games in a combined 7:05 [Times: 1:33, 1:27, 2:01, 2:04]

The blast - on the 561st pitch of the game - came off Ironman Nathan Eovaldi (6-3-2-1-5, 97), who entered the game in the twelfth as the Red Sox's ninth pitcher of the night (though it was well into morning by then). Eovaldi also pitched one inning in each of the first two games. The only two Boston players who did not see action in this game were Chris Sale and Drew Pomeranz, though Pomeranz was warming up when the game ended and probably would have pitched the nineteenth (and beyond?).

The Red Sox tied the game at 1-1 when Jackie Bradley homered off Kenley Jansen with two outs in the eighth. All 10 of JBJ's postseason RBI have come with two outs. Ian Kinsler was thrown out at the plate trying to score on a fly to center in the tenth.

Both teams scored in the thirteenth, aided by an opposing team error. The Red Sox left the bases loaded in their half. Eduardo Nunez nearly died in the inning. First, he was topped over by the Dodgers catcher on a loose ball and may have hurt his ankle. Then he slid headfirst into first base on an infield single. In the bottom half of the inning, he fell into the stands after running hard and catching a foul ball. Later, he caught a popup by the mound for the first out of the sixteenth and tumbled into the dirt.

Manager Alex Cora also moved his outfielders around in the eighth through the twelfth innings, depending on the batter, with Mookie Betts and Jackie Bradley changing positions seven times.

Dodgers starter Walker Buehler (7-2-0-0-7, 108) is only the third pitcher in World Series history to throw seven or more scoreless innings while allowing two hits or fewer. The other two are Don Larsen (Game 5, 1956) and Fat Billy from Ohio (Game 2, 2000). Buehler retired the Red Sox in order in the first inning on 26 pitches, the most in any 1-2-3 inning in postseason history. He threw a career-high 108 pitches.

Three World Series games had gone 14 innings: 1916 Game 2 (Red Sox 2, Dodgers 1), 2005 Game 3 (White Sox 7, Astros 5), and 2015 Game 1 (Royals 5, Mets 4). ... The 1916 game was played in only 2:32!

(4:15 AM: More later ...)

(10:23 AM: Or maybe not.)

(2:35 PM: Nope.)

5:30 PM: Thousands of words could be written about last night's game. (And if they are, I want to read them.) I had hoped to comment on the horrendous pitch-calling of plate umpire Ted Barrett and the numerous calls that went against the Red Sox, especially in the later extra innings. I know Barrett blew calls that harmed the Dodgers, too, but for several innings, his strike zone suddenly tightened up when a Boston pitcher was on the mound. It's that sort of alternating strike zone that makes a serious fan s0mewhat paranoid about the honesty of the game.

But when a game ends at 3:30 and you finally go to bed around 4:15 and then get up around 8:15 and eventually head off to work a 12-hour day, there simply is no time. And it seems pointless to do that kind of examination several days after the game has been played.

Rick Porcello / Walter Buehler
Betts, RF
Bogaerts, SS
Moreland, 1B
Martinez, LF
Holt, 2B
Devers, 3B
Bradley, CF
Vázquez, C
Porcello, P
The Red Sox's bats are going to come out hard and kick ass. They are going to send the opposing pitcher to the showers so fast, everyone will think Friday is Walter Buehler's Day Off!

(A pop culture reference from more than 30 years ago! It's just what the big-time sportswriters do! Woo!)

Since 2004, the Red Sox are 14-2 in World Series games.

I am loathe to give Manny Machado credit for anything, but he certainly did his job at second base in the fourth inning of Game 2. The Red Sox said that Machado was stealing and relaying signs from second base to hitters. His work led to the Dodgers taking a 2-1 lead in the game.
Throughout Enrique Hernandez's nine-pitch battle with [David] Price, Machado appeared to be relaying signs and/or location to Hernandez through an exaggerated series of motions.

As Price was coming set, Machado, leading off from second, would place his hands on his hips. Then, just before each pitch, Machado would begin a series of motions: touching his helmet with either his right or left hand, sometimes then touching or pulling the script on his jersey afterward and other times grabbing or touching the thigh/groin area of his pants. ...

"Was it a little exaggerated? Yeah, maybe, but I saw the whole thing," [pitching coach Dana] LeVangie said of Machado's gyrations. "I had told [Boston manager] Alex [Cora] I wanted to go [to the mound] before the Puig at-bat because I wanted to talk about some things. But ... I didn't want to f--k with the momentum there because David got a huge strikeout."

Plus, catcher Christian Vazquez had taken a mound visit already in the inning ...

From second, Machado gestured again. Puig swung at the first pitch he saw, a 93 mph fastball, knocking an RBI single into center to give the Dodgers their first—and only—lead of the series. It was Machado who scored. ...

LeVangie went out after Puig's RBI single to talk with Price and Vazquez ...

"We had a conversation," LeVangie said. "I don't want to get into the depths of it, but I brought up exactly what you're talking about. I let it get in my way—because of the strikeout, I didn't go out there [earlier]. I was so pissed that I didn't."
LeVangie was adamant that Machado did absolutely nothing wrong. "If you're not hiding your stuff with a runner on second base and you're giving them a free view, that's on you, the pitcher and the catcher. It's up to the pitcher and catcher to manage that and to us to oversee it ... We see this all the time. Not just him, with everyone."

17 comments:

GK said...

The pitcher's name is WalKER Buelher.
He will be a great early walker, to the dugout

allan said...

GAME NOTES

The Red Sox are the 55th team to take a 2-0 lead in the World Series. Prior to 2018, each of the last 10 teams to hold a 2-0 lead in the World Series went on to win the title, as well as 16 of the last 17, and 43 of 54 overall. This is the fifth time the Sox have held a 2-0 lead in the World Series, also doing so in 1916 (won, 4-1), 1986 (lost, 3-4), 2004 (won, 4-0), and 2007 (won, 4-0).

The Red Sox have won their last 6 postseason games (ALCS Games 2-5, WS Games 1-2). The only other years in which they won 6+ consecutive games in a single postseason are 2004 (8 straight) and 2007 (7).

The Red Sox are 14-2 in their last 16 World Series games, dating back to Game 1 of the 2004 Fall Classic. In those games, they have outscored opponents, 92-42. The Yankees are the only other team ever to go 14-2 or better in any 16-game stretch of World Series play (most recently: 1996-2001).

In 8 of 11 games this postseason, the Red Sox have held a lead at the time they pulled their starting pitcher (tied once, trailing twice).

In 6 of their 11 games, Red Sox starters have thrown at least 5.0 innings and allowed two runs or fewer. They have thrown 6.0+ innings four times and 7.0+ innings once.

In the World Series, Craig Kimbrel, Nathan Eovaldi, and Joe Kelly have retired all 18 batters faced (7K).

Beginning with Game 2 of the ALDS, Red Sox relievers have stranded 16 of their last 17 inherited runners.

Red Sox pitchers are 4-for-their-last-54 (.074) in the World Series, including 0-for-their-last-10. The last pitchers to record a hit in the World Series were Daisuke Matsuzaka (2007 Game 3), Bill Lee (1975 Game 7), and Luis Tiant (1975 Game 4). The only Red Sox pitcher to hit a homer in the World Series is Jose Santiago (1967 Game 1 off Bob Gibson).

The Red Sox have played 207 games in the last 245 days, including 2 exhibition games against Northeastern University and Boston College (2-0), 32 Grapefruit League games (22-9-1), 162 regular season games (108-54), and 11 postseason games (9-2). All together, the Sox are 141-65-1 (.681) in 2018.

The Red Sox are 5-0 on the road in the postseason, having outscored opponents by a combined 40-13 margin away from Fenway Park. This is the Red Sox's longest road winning streak in postseason history. The Sox are one of seven teams ever to win 5+ consecutive road games in a single postseason (last: 2014 Royals).

The only teams to win as many as six straight road games in a single postseason are the 2005 White Sox (6-0) and 1996 Yankees (8-0), who both won the World Series.

The Red Sox are 9-0 this postseason when scoring the game's first run. They have scored multiple runs in the 1st inning five times (ALDS Game 1, ALCS Games 2-4, World Series Game 1). The Sox are 9-0 when scoring 3+ runs and 5-0 in games decided by either one or two runs.

With RISP this postseason, the Red Sox are batting .363/.492/.626 (33-for-91, 13 XBH, 23 BB, 3 HBP). With RISP and 2 outs, they have posted a .415/.564/.756 line (17-for-41, 7 XBH, 11 BB, 3 HBP). 34 of the Red Sox's 65 RBI have come with 2 outs.

Opposing starters have a 7.47 ERA (39 ER/47.0 IP) against the Red Sox.

The only member of the Red Sox's active roster to win a World Series is Xander Bogaerts. He started all six games of the 2013 Fall Classic at 3B at the age of 21. In 2011 with TEX, Ian Kinsler and Mitch Moreland came within one strike of winning the World Series. In 2013, Joe Kelly and the Cardinals held a 2-games-to-1 lead over the Red Sox, but Boston won the next three games.

Paul Hickman said...

Manny Maximum Effort ........ Walking HARD for the money .......

Unknown said...

What the f... was Cora thinking? This gonna be a Pitching mess .

Unknown said...

This is gonna be a pitching mess.

Paul Hickman said...

What a Shitter that was ........

The SUFFERING is Strong !!!!!!!!!

Paul Hickman said...

Longest game in 34 years all up - which if you do the Maths is about 85 000 games !

Do we have a "new" category of defeat here ?

You could argue we lost 2 games in one & it almost feels like 2-2

There are many things I don't know in life ...... but 1 thing I do definitely know , most Champion Teams are "challenged" at some point

Game 4 tomorrow the Sox will face a physical & psychological test like few teams have ever had in Baseball History

Now we'll find out just how good this Sox team really is ?

For some strange unearthly reason I am supremely confident they will rise to the challenge , maybe because over the whole season we know the Sox have & they deserve to win it

But tomorrow represents a chance to show how & why they deserve that Trophy

Because now suddenly we have something to lose - it was almost too easy in the first 2 games

Now the Gauntlet has been thrown down ...... The moment is HERE , Now , to answer the call , change the momentum back & "win" the World Series

Paul Hickman said...

Levels of Commitment & Effort

Manny Machado v Eduardo Nunez

Compare & Contrast. Discuss

I think we can all agree that Eddy Nunez just simply needs to try harder !!!

I expected more blood , dirt & broken equipment from him ....... Disappointing !!!

Whereas Manny runs like a Gazelle ...... a Gazelle with 3 legs that has been shot 8 times

1 guy can't even put in the effort to jog in the World Series , the other is like a Human Wrecking Ball causing damage to himself & all sorts at every available opportunity

Perhaps we can nominate for the MVP of Human Carnage - the Annual "Manny MachaDON'T" Award for the bloke who makes the most mess of himself in the efforts

So far Eddy probably leads from Mookie ?

David Cho said...

Very happy, but I can't take this any more.

laura k said...

Very happy, but I can't take this any more.

You won't have to. :)

laura k said...

I totally disagree with Paul H. Last night was an AWESOME game, one of the greatest I've ever seen or ever will see. Cora was brilliant! We'll win the Series, doesn't have to be a sweep. This was one for the ages.

Paul Hickman said...

Laura it WAS a brilliant game - I certainly acknowledge that , a Classic , just a tragedy to lose it after so so long ...... Plus the added twist of the knife - IF we lose from here that will be forever the turning point , if we win it'll merely be a footnote in history

SoxgirlNYC said...

Have not posted before but long time reader and admirer of Joyofsox. (Thank you Allan for your insightful and wonderfully partisan writing) Totally agree with you Laura!! What a game. Worth the baseball hangover today. My scoresheet is a mess but a treasure now. Go Sox!

David Cho said...

Laura. Wow. Ouch. You are actually good at this.

Some say the Dodgers were still in Brooklyn when the game started. I don't remember. Can you confirm?

allan said...

What the f... was Cora thinking? This gonna be a Pitching mess

The only pitchers Cora did not use last night were Sale and Pomeranz -- and Pom was warming for the 19th. Please tell me exactly what should Cora have done.

Should Mookie have pitched? Should Kimbrel have gone five innings? Should Cora have brought in the not-good Pomeranz in instead of the very-good Eovaldi?

I guess what Cora REALLY should have done was make sure the Red Sox won in nine innings. But no, he could not do that. Because he sucks.

allan said...

Some say the Dodgers were still in Brooklyn when the game started. I don't remember. Can you confirm?

Not sure about that, but Larry King got divorced, married his 9th wife, and got divorced from her, all before the 17th inning.

My scoresheet is a mess but a treasure now.

I'd like to see it. ... Unfortunately, I was working for the first 4-5 innings or so and just filled in the basics, then missed the 10-12th innings. Also walked the dog for the 15th. So it is not as covered in ink as it would have been had I sat and watched the entire thing.

allan said...

If you typed out all of John Smoltz's moronic and incomprehensible statements from last night's game, I think it would be more pages than the OED.