Rangers Battle Back, Suffer Casualties in Game 3 Victory

The FanGraphs Newsletter, October 31, 2023 [READ IN BROWSER]( October 31, 2023 While Monday night’s World Series Game 3 victory might not qualify as Pyrrhic, it definitely came at a price for the Rangers. After three scoreless innings, starter Max Scherzer left with back tightness, forcing Jon Gray into an impromptu piggyback start. Adolis García, who is in the midst of a jaw-dropping, record-setting postseason run, left after seven innings with left side tightness. Meanwhile, two days removed from stealing one on the road in Texas, the Diamondbacks must feel deflated, losing 3-1 despite outhitting the Rangers, six hits to five. Texas now boast a 2-1 series lead. Coming in, the question was about Scherzer’s thumb, which had developed a cut just below the base of the nail. He reportedly kept the wound from reopening with a concoction of super glue and cotton. It’s hard to say, but it could have had an effect on his pitching. Scherzer’s spin rate was below his season average on all five of his pitches (even during the first two innings, when his velocity was above his season average), and his curveball, slider, and changeup all had less movement than usual. Until his injury, Scherzer seemed to be benefitting from luck. He walked two and allowed two hits over his three innings, but he kept the Diamondbacks off the scoreboard by virtue of a double play, an outfield assist on some bad baserunning in the second inning, and a fortunate bounce on a comebacker. [READ MORE]( [Cubs Prospect Luke Little Is a Large Southpaw With Low-Slot Sweep]( The 6-foot-8, 270-pound left-hander's power arsenal earned him a September cup of coffee in Chicago. | by David Laurila [Breaking Down the Kansas Kids' Gold Glove Snub]( Bobby Witt Jr. and Maikel Garcia made for a must-watch left side of the infield for the Royals this season. But when the Gold Glove finalists were announced, they were nowhere to be found. | by Alex Eisert [NLCS Managerial Report Card: Rob Thomson]( The Phillies came up just short in a bid for their second consecutive World Series berth, but don't pin that loss on Thomson, who adroitly managed his well-built playoff team. | by Ben Clemens [The Postseason Marte Party Is One Long Hitting Streak]( Taking a closer look at the second baseman's record-setting 18-game postseason hitting streak. | by Jay Jaffe [Contract Crowdsourcing 2023-24: Ballot 1 of 11]( The first installment of this year's crowdsourcing effort is here. | by Meg Rowley 🎧 [Effectively Wild Episode 2078: Drought Conditions]( [DOWNLOAD THE FANGRAPHS APP]( [FanGraphs & Effectively Wild Merch Is Now Available at BreakingT!]( [ORDER HERE]( [Why a World Series bullpen game provides the ultimate test for Rangers' starting pitching depth]( by Bradford Doolittle, ESPN ($) [3 key storylines for Game 4]( by Will Leitch, MLB [A Halloween tale of Rangers righty Jon Gray, a World Series star with a passion for the paranormal]( by Tyler Kepner, The Athletic ($) [Is Wyatt Langford An Option To Replace Adolis Garcia?]( by Geoff Pontes, Baseball America ($) [@fangraphs]( [FanGraphs]( [FanGraphs]( [RSS]( [FORWARD]( [SUBSCRIBE]( Copyright © 2023 FanGraphs Inc, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you subscribed to the FanGraphs Newsletter. Our mailing address is: FanGraphs Inc 1200 N Hartford St. Apt 312Arlington, Va 22201 [Add us to your address book]( Want to change how you receive these emails? You can [update your preferences]( or [unsubscribe from this list](