Not a must-win, but a mustn’t-lose…
There’s an old saying that a series doesn’t start until the home team loses. Then there’s the fact that the winner of Game 1 has gone on to win 24 of the past 30 World Series. If you subscribe to one of those, this series either hasn’t started or is basically already over. We can probably agree the complexion of this World Series rests upon the outcome of Game 2. If the Yankees win, they put the Game 1 dramatics in the rearview and head home with a chance to win the series in New York. If the Yankees lose, though, they’re on the ropes with wiggle room for only one more loss.
Aaron Judge is not right
Jack Flaherty whiffed Aaron Judge three times in Game 1, offering him on breaking ball after another. Judge jumped on a Brusdar Graterol fastball for a seventh-inning single, then popped out weakly when Blake Treinen offered some elevated cheese with two on and two outs in the ninth. This is not the Judge we’ve grown accustomed to seeing. He is batting .167 this postseason, with 16 strikeouts to seven walks across 46 plate appearances. The Dodgers do not appear inclined to pitch around Judge, and some Yankees fans clamoring to drop him in the batting order.
Two World Series debuts
Taking the ball in Game 2 are Dodgers rookie Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Yankees starter Carlos Rodón. Both have had uneven results this month. Rodón has allowed seven runs in 14 1/3 innings, and Yamamoto has permitted seven runs in 12 1/3 innings. Each has completed five innings only once. It’s unlikely either Yamamoto or Rodón goes especially deep into Game 2, which could tax the bullpens that already saw significant action in Game 1.
