⚾ Unpredictable World Series Enters Vital Stage

The World Series is alive and kicking as a pivotal Game 3 is on the horizon. [View in browser]( [FOX SPORTS INSIDER WITH MARTIN ROGERS] In today’s FOX Sports Insider: This quirky, impossible-to-predict World Series is set to move into its most vital stage ... we take a look at how the relationship between Becky Hammon and Oklahoma City Thunder leadership could spur NBA history ... and we are introduced to a future soccer superstar. The World Series is two games old but it has already given us a lot: eight homers, 43 strikeouts, an early signal of intent and a sudden shift in momentum. There has been a Clayton Kershaw redemption story, a Game 2 identity crisis where each team seemed to assume the other’s personality, and, rather wonderfully, a fan so excited about snagging a home run ball that he accidentally threw his glove into the outfield. “And now it really starts,” FOX Sports MLB analyst and 2009 World Series champion Nick Swisher said, after the Los Angeles Dodgers and Tampa Bay Rays sit tied at one game apiece going into one of this postseason’s ultimate rarities – a rest day. For all the drama of the opening two games, the reality is that a best-of-seven series has now simply been boiled down to best-of-five, and by the end of the weekend, Major League Baseball will either have crowned a new champion or one of these teams will be no more than a single victory from the prize. Despite all the differences, headlined by the obvious one that the Dodgers spend eye-watering sums to stack their squad while the Rays tighten their belts beyond the boundaries of a bearable pinch, they are starting to find a lot more in common, according to Swisher. “It is getting past the point now where you can say the Dodgers are this huge favorite because of their squad and the money and all the rest of it,” Swisher added. “It all boils down to a few games left. Whoever goes out there and gets the job done will take it home. It is time to perform.” [STORY IMAGE 1] Game 3 will feature a pair of pitching studs. The Dodgers were so keen to get fireballer Walker Buehler an extra two days of rest that they turned Game 2 into a bullpen outing that didn’t quite go according to plan. While L.A. sends out Buehler, Tampa Bay will stand behind Charlie Morton on Friday, hoping his proven big-game capability continues and that the memories of his magnificent Game 7 outing in the ALCS are fresh. “He was throwing absolute filth,” Swisher added, glowingly, when discussing Morton’s decisive performance against the Astros, his former team. “Charlie Morton knows what this stage is all about and it’s a great matchup. “It is an extremely pivotal game in the whole thing. No one has true momentum right now, because of the Rays winning Game 2 and then the off day. Whoever wins the next one will carry a lot into the weekend.” [STORY IMAGE 2] If Buehler and Morton each hit their stride early, the scene at Globe Life Field has a chance to look like one of those more traditional baseball games, where the starter doesn’t just start, but actually makes it a decent way into the game. Game 2 was an oddity because it was the Dodgers piecing things together. L.A. used an opener against the team that invented the concept, utilizing Tony Gonsolin as the first of seven pitchers – one short of the all-time Series record for a nine-inning game. The Rays, masters of the makeshift, got four innings of excellence from Blake Snell before he began to stutter, then turned it over to their steadfast bullpen. And while it had been Tampa Bay struggling to find offense and striking out too often in recent postseason games, this time it was the Dodgers that fanned 15 times as their opponents collected 10 hits – the Rays’ most since the wildcard round. In truth, the underdogs from Florida, who are currently listed at +165 to win the series according to [FOX Bet]( may not have been able to survive going two behind. Now each team knows there is everything to play for. [STORY IMAGE 3] “I don’t think anybody in our clubhouse thought the series was over,’’ said Brandon Lowe after his two home run performance. “We took care of business, and played our game.” The series is alive and kicking and offers a fascinating look into the very fabric of the professional game. The Dodgers, most would agree, are the better team, but not by enough to make this the mismatch some thought it would be. L.A. manager Dave Roberts retains an air of confidence that, frankly, may not be shared by the team’s anticipatory yet nervous fan base. “We feel great,” Roberts said. “We've got Walker going, we’ve got Julio (Urias) going and then we've got Clayton. You look at where our relievers are set with the off-day, we're in a great spot.” [STORY IMAGE 4] Given the disparity in how the teams got to this point, Swisher wonders what a Rays victory might do to the economic makeup of the sport. “If I am a player the last thing I want is for the Rays to win,” he said. “If they do, there will be owners all around the league thinking ‘If those guys can win it spending (a prorated $28.3 million), and we couldn’t win it with spending three or four times as much, maybe it is time to look at things differently?’” It is a worthy conundrum and one that will demand our attention if it comes to it. But it is a question for another day because there is a more immediate and pressing one right now, as this quirky, undulating and impossible-to-predict series moves into its most vital stage. What’s next? [STORY IMAGE 5] Here’s what others have said ... Mike Oz, Yahoo Sports: “If we’re forecasting must-win games now, Game 3 looms large. Sure, every World Series game feels like a must-win, but the way the pitching slots in, this could really swing the advantage to either side. The Dodgers have their best pitcher on the mound in Buehler. Ideally, they count on winning the games he pitches. If they can win that and then enter Game 4 without a legit Rays starter to oppose them, they have to like their chances. Meanwhile, the Rays likely have to beat Buehler to win this series, so Game 3 is equally important for them. If they can, then the dominoes can fall much more easily — Urias and Kershaw next, then probably a repeat of Game 2 in Game 6. The Rays will take that if they can get it.” Gabe Lacques, USA Today: “They won 72% of their games this season, are appearing in their third World Series in four years and feature what seems like a bottomless trough of talent. Objectively, in both a short-and long-term sense, the Los Angeles Dodgers are the best baseball has to offer. So as casual viewers tuned into Game 2 of the World Series and saw a parade of pitchers head to the mound, only to get yanked, touched for a run or two here, slowly watching the game slip away and control of the series tilt back toward the Tampa Bay Rays, it was fair to wonder: The best team in baseball can’t do any better than this?” Michael Baumann, The Ringer: “The more this series becomes about bullpen depth and picking the right pitcher for the right spot, the more the scales tip in the Rays’ favor. The Dodgers would likely win an orderly series, but the Rays are at their best in times of chaos.” [IN OTHER WORDS] - Are the Oklahoma City Thunder on the verge of hiring the NBA’s first female head coach? [USA Today’s Jenni Carlson]( explains why the relationship between Becky Hammon and Thunder leadership could spur NBA history. - Where will LaMelo Ball land in the 2020 NBA Draft? [Sports Illustrated’s Jeremy Woo]( writes that Ball has become the draft’s biggest swing factor. - After struggling mightily through this postseason, Tampa Bay Rays second baseman Brandon Lowe homered twice to lift the Rays to a 6-4 victory over the Dodgers in Game 2 of the World Series. [ESPN’s Jeff Passan]( details how Lowe got his swing straightened out at exactly the right time. [THE INTERNET IS UNDEFEATED] [THE INTERNET IS UNDEFEATED]( You can call him a future Pele, Ronaldo, or Messi. Either way, this two-year old soccer prodigy is awfully impressive! Take a look at this video, which shows a young soccer star named Noah put on a clinic. The video shows Noah making shot-after-shot with barricades blocking part of the net. If you want to see the most impressive part of the video, fast-forward to the :20 mark, where Noah performs a pair of perfect bicycle kicks while lying on his back. We’re going to go ahead and declare Noah a future soccer star! [VIEWER'S GUIDE] Arkansas State at Appalachian State (ESPN, 7:30 p.m. ET) Logan Bonner and the Arkansas State Red Wolves go up against Zac Thomas and the Appalachian State Mountaineers. New York Giants at Philadelphia Eagles (FOX, 7:30 p.m. ET) Daniel Jones and the New York Giants travel to Philadelphia to take on Carson Wentz and the Eagles. Women’s College Volleyball: Florida at Auburn (ESPNU, 8 p.m. ET) Paige Hammons and the Florida Gators take on Tatum Shipes and the Auburn Tigers. [BET OF THE DAY] [BET OF THE DAY]( Odds provided by [FOX Bet]( This week's NFL [Super 6 contest]( features two of the most public teams in all of football as underdogs, and an opportunity for the Dallas Cowboys to get things right. But more importantly, it offers you a chance to win $1 million – yes, you read that right – absolutely free. Here is a look at the six contests, with picks via FOX Sports’ Jason McIntyre: Cowboys by 1-3 points at Washington Football Team Packers by 4-6 points at Texans Saints by 7-9 points vs. Panthers Falcons by 1-3 points vs. Lions Steelers by 4-6 points at Titans Seahawks by 7-9 points at Cardinals [WHAT THEY SAID] “Baseball is the only field of endeavor where a man can succeed three times out of ten and be considered a good performer.” — Ted Williams [FOLLOW FOX SPORTS] [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [YouTube]( [Instagram]( Download FOX Sports App: [Fire TV]( [Roku]( [Google Play]( [App Store]( [Fire TV]( [Roku]( [App Store]( [Google Play]( Also available on these devices: [fireTV | AppleTV | ROKU | Google Chromecast | XBOX ONE | SAMSUNG Smart TV] [fireTV | AppleTV | ROKU | Google Chromecast | XBOX ONE | SAMSUNG Smart TV] Trademark & Copyright Notice: ™ and © 2020 Fox Media LLC and FOX Sports Interactive Media, LLC. All rights reserved. Please do not reply to this message. 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