The New York Yankees are down 0-2 in the World Series, but the next three games are in the Bronx and will seal the team’s fate. Winning two of them will guarantee that the Fall Classic returns to Los Angeles, where the Yankees were relatively close to winning both games. To win on Monday, three crucial situations/developments will have to occur.
Things to watch as the Yankees try to win Game 3
Getting at least five innings from Clarke Schmidt
Monday marks the beginning of three straight days with games. A short outing by Schmidt would mean bringing in the bullpen earlier than the Yankees would like and exposing it to the Dodgers accumulating looks at each pitcher, and getting familiar with them, not to mention normal stress, wear and tear with two games on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Getting a normal outing by Schmidt will allow the Yankees to deploy their bullpen normally, hopefully with a lead. Six innings would be ideal, of course, but five would suffice.
Rediscovering their power stroke
Make no mistake, the Yankees are a powerful team. Aaron Judge hit 58 home runs, Juan Soto had 41, Giancarlo Stanton accumulated 27, Jazz Chisholm Jr. had 24, and so on.
Even though the Dodgers haven’t really been all that successful with men on base and in scoring position, they are outhomering the Yanks 4-2 and that has been the difference in the series.
It’s not only Judge — if the Yankees, as a team, can outhomer LA in the Bronx, they will likely get a couple of wins to get back in the series.
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Aaron Judge showing solid contact
This one is a no-brainer. Take off the name if you will — not a lot of teams will be able to produce runs and win games with the third-hole hitter boasting a .605 OPS in the playoffs.
A solid contact to open Game 3, even if it finds a glove, can mean the world to Judge and give him confidence. Hard contact equals more chances of scoring extra bases, home runs, and production in general.
The Yankees absolutely need Judge to deliver in the upcoming three games.
