Friday, October 30, 2015

What I'm Watching For - Game 3 Cont'd

Quick gut feelings breakdown I'll be watching closely tonight:

#2.) Can Cain and Hosmer provide the pop they did in last year's postseason? Lo has been on base a ton this postseason, but hasn't provided the electricity at the plate he did last year. He's been great in the field and on the basepaths, as one might expect, but the 'stay away' approach pitchers are taking with him has softened his thunderous bat a little. Don't get me wrong, I like hard grounders slashed through the 3.5 hole between second and first, but Cain has much more to offer this offense in terms of driving the ball to the gaps.

As for Hosmer, we've all heard about his impressive clutch hitting with runners on so far this playoffs. But, like Cain, most of those RBI are coming on sacrifices or well-placed groundball singles. He hasn't been able to get extended and drive the ball to left-center, which is when you know he's going well. He's been crucial in keeping the line moving, but he's yet to provide the big blows Royals fans have no doubt been expecting each time he's up. Haven't looked too far into it yet, but I do believe pitch selection has played into this. He's swinging at more balls out of the zone than I'm used to seeing, and he's taking more first-pitch strikes as well.

Let's hope the day off and more homer-friendly ballpark wake these guys up a bit.

#3.) Keep the Moose train rolling. As I said in my Game 2 preview, Moose has looked like the most comfortable and confident hitter in the Royals' lineup outside of Ben Zobrist. Maybe it's something about colder weather that allows Moose to quiet down, or maybe he's just another Royal who's better when the spotlight's brightest. Either way, let's hope he keeps this approach up, because when he's spraying the ball to all fields while flashing that pull power, he's tough to defend.

#4.) Can the Mets hit? We've already broken down the Royals' Game 3 starter and why his best pitch will be so important to their success tonight. But what hasn't been talked about much is this Mets lineup and whether or not they can deliver for the home club when it matters most. Look, this isn't a lineup that's going to inspire many oos and ahs, especially when you get to the bottom third, but they did lead the NL in homeruns and runs scored after the All-Star break, and you saw what's possible when just one guy gets ultra-hot in a series. So far in the World series, they've only scratched out 5 runs over 23 innings against a Royals pitching staff not exactly expected to be lock-down in the first 5 or so innings. So what's the deal? Simple- they need Cespedes, Duda and Murphy to get back to their patient, slugging ways. Too many off-balance swings, too many fastballs taken, too much jumpiness. I expect this Mets offense to be much more relaxed tonight after sleeping in their own beds and knowing just how important Game 3 is to their title hopes.

For Royals fans, this will come down to Ventura's ability to stay calm, stay within himself and establish the fastball.

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