{"id":3481,"date":"2024-10-29T08:15:20","date_gmt":"2024-10-29T08:15:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hotnews.azontree.com\/?p=3481"},"modified":"2024-10-29T08:15:20","modified_gmt":"2024-10-29T08:15:20","slug":"world-series-game-3-takeaways-buehler-dodgers-bullpen-keep-yankees-bats-quiet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hotnews.azontree.com\/?p=3481","title":{"rendered":"World Series Game 3 Takeaways: Buehler, Dodgers Bullpen Keep Yankees\u2019 Bats Quiet"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Los Angeles took a commanding 3\u20130 lead in the World Series on Monday behind another scoreless outing from Walker Buehler in a 4\u20132 win that pushes the Yankees to the brink of elimination.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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\"Buehler<\/picture><\/figure>\n
Buehler hurled five scoreless innings while allowing only four baserunners in Game 3. \/ Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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The season is on the brink for the New York Yankees. Down 2\u20130 in the World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers, their bats were inexcusably quiet in Game 3 on Monday, leading to a 4\u20132 loss. The Dodgers now sit just one win away from a title.<\/p>\n

Los Angeles jumped out to a 2\u20130 lead in the first inning on a home run from (who else?) Freddie Freeman. There was no looking back. Yankees starter Clarke Schmidt had to be yanked in the third inning. And the parade of relievers that followed him\u2014seven\u00a0<\/strong>in all\u2014received no run support until it was too late. New York scored its first runs with two outs and two strikes in the bottom of the ninth inning: A two-run home run from Alex Verdugo ensured the game would not be a shutout. But that was the only real offense of the night.<\/p>\n

The Yankees\u2019 lineup finished the night 5-for-31 with 11\u00a0<\/strong>strikeouts. That disappointing performance included\u00a0continued struggles for presumptive MVP slugger Aaron Judge, who went 0-for-3, though he struck out only once.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Dodgers superstar designated hitter Shohei Ohtani remained in the lineup for Game 3 after a scare at the end of Game 2, when a failed steal attempt resulted in a subluxation of his left shoulder. (He looked somewhat compromised\u2014he could be seen wincing after swings and positioned his arm very carefully when running the bases\u2014and went 0-for-3 but reached base twice, once on a walk, once on a hit by pitch on his foot.) When he takes the field tomorrow for Game 4, it will be to play for his first championship.<\/p>\n

Walker Buehler\u2019s Day On\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\n

This has been a rocky season for Buehler. He began the year on the injured list while still recovering from the Tommy John surgery that sidelined him for the entirety of last season. After a difficult return to the mound in May, he then missed the majority of the summer with a hip injury, finally making his way back to the roster in mid-August. But he never looked quite like himself. Buehler finished the regular season with a 5.38 ERA (72 ERA+)\u2014by far the worst marks of his career. His first playoff start this year offered more of the same. (He allowed six runs in five innings in a loss to the San Diego Padres in the NLDS.) But he looked notably sharper against the New York Mets in the NLCS, and in Game 3 on Monday, he shone.<\/p>\n

Buehler did not allow a hit until the fourth inning. New York struggled to make hard contact against him and whiffed repeatedly on his fastball. (Buehler finished with five strikeouts.) The Yankees were 2-for-14 against him with two walks. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts pulled him after five scoreless innings\u2014reasonably choosing not to have him see the top of the lineup a third time\u2014but he looked as if he could have comfortably gone another frame or two. It was among his best outings of the year: Buehler had just one scoreless performance in the regular season, which came against the Reds back in May, before his hip injury. And this one could not have come at a better time.<\/p>\n

Clarke Schmidt\u2019s Cutter Abandons Him<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Schmidt got more strikeouts on his cutter than on any of his other pitches this year. It was his primary choice for a putaway pitch; roughly a third of swings on his cutter ended up whiffing. But on Monday night against L.A.? Schmidt threw 21 cutters and got\u00a0zero<\/em>\u00a0whiffs. The Dodgers simply refused to chase. And, of course, when they did swing on the pitch, they made him pay.<\/p>\n

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