MLB World Series Showdown: Claire Vs. Nino

Aron Glatzer by Analyst Written on October 24, 2008
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If you've seen Claire Reclosado and Nino Colla's respective Philadelphia Phillies and Tampa Bay Rays reactions throughout this 2008 Major League Baseball playoffs, you've noticed these two writers are extremely dialed in to the daily happenings of each ballclub that has advanced to the World Series.

Along with their usual game reactions, they have matched wits on some major questions facing both teams.

 

Phillies Q: Does Jamie Moyer give the Phillies any sort of a shot winning Game Three?

Claire's Response: Was the dependable arm conditioned to lose steam in October? It’s been a while since Moyer won a game in October (2002), but this is the World Series, and he knows that there may not be many chances for this opportunity ahead of him.

Let’s wipe the slate clean. Jamie Moyer is a seasoned veteran who is a vital part of the National League Champion Phillies. During the regular season, he led the team in wins, so people shouldn’t be so quick to overlook the crafty 45 year old.

Game Three will find Moyer well rested and at home. He’s been in the postseason before and knows what’s required of him. No one wants to be the man on the bench who didn’t contribute.

The Rays are a fastball-hitting team (although they were successful against Boston's Tim Wakefield), so the Phillies' hometown pitcher can easily rediscover success against the youngsters. Game Three will be the game where the Moyer redeems himself.

 

Rays Q: B.J. Upton and Evan Longoria got off to poor starts. How much of that came down to the pitching of Cole Hamels and how much falls on their shoulders?

Nino's Response: Given what we saw in Game Two, it looks as if one is suffering from his own doing, and the other was suffering of Cole Hamels' changeup. For Evan Longoria, it's between the ears. He actually hasn't been hitting the ball all that well in a consistent fashion this postseason.

His six home runs are great, but they are also more than half of his hit total. Longoria is hitting .220 for the entire playoffs, and his struggles are the product of his own doing.

Manager Joe Maddon has tried getting back to basics with the youngster, and it's simply a process for the rookie. He'll need to take a different approach into each at-bat and just try to hit the ball up the middle or the other way. His home-run stroke is there, but pitchers like Cole Hamels are smart enough to not give him a pitch that he can hit out of the ballpark.

B.J. Upton, on the other hand, was just struggling with the Hamels changeup. He's part of that group of Rays that can't adjust to it if it's good enough. As you saw in Game Two, Upton was back at it, getting two hits, but he also hit into another double play. Upton is on fire right now, and the changeup is probably the only thing that can stop him.

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written on October 24, 2008 Preview/Prediction

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