Philadelphia rallied for three runs off
Andy Pettitte in the second inning, and Cole Hamels has looked strong as the
Phillies have jumped out to a 3-0 lead over the Yankees in a pivotal Game 3 of
the World Series.
With the series knotted at a game apiece, Saturday's contest started more than
an hour late because of rain.
But once the tarp was taken off the field at Citizens Bank Park, Hamels came
out strong. The left-hander had struggled this postseason in three starts,
posting a 6.75 ERA, but Saturday looked more like the pitcher he was in 2008,
when he captured the MVP honors in the NLCS and World Series.
Hamels set the Yankees down in order in the first inning, worked around
hitting Alex Rodriguez to keep New York off the scoreboard in the second, then
had a 1-2-3 third.
His lefty counterpart Pettitte, meanwhile, got into trouble in the second. The
Phillies' first run came in an instant, as Jayson Werth reached for a low-and-
away pitch and lofted it over the left-field wall for a leadoff homer. Two
batters later, Pedro Feliz blasted a fly ball to right-center that fell for a
double.
Pettitte then walked Carlos Ruiz, and the Phillies got a big break in the next
at-bat. Hamels went up to put down a bunt and placed one several feet off the
third-base line. However, there was an apparent communication error among New
York's fielders and no play was made, leaving the bases loaded with one away.
Pettitte continued to struggle, getting into a 3-0 count to Jimmy Rollins
before eventually walking him to force in a run. Shane Victorino followed with
a sacrifice fly to left for a 3-0 Phillies lead before Pettitte got Chase
Utley looking at strike three to end the threat.
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