World Series Game 3 postponement benefits Phillies more than Astros

PHILADELPHIA — Brandon Marsh’s hair wasn’t the only thing soaking wet at Citizens Bank Park on Monday Night.

At around 6 p.m. ET, the rain began to fall. At first, a light but consistent drizzle pitter-pattered down onto the enormous white tarp covering the infield. But as the clock ticked, the rain intensified and the forecast looked even worse. And because you can’t play baseball in a shower, MLB officially postponed Game 3 of the World Series at around 7 p.m. ET. 

Phillies fans, understandably amped about their club’s first home World Series game since 2009, will have to wait another 24 hours. Put the Yuenglings back in the cooler, throw the Harper jerseys back in the dresser. Delirium will have to wait. 

Has this happened before?

World Series games have been postponed numerous times because of weather or other unforeseen circumstances. The 1989 World Series between Oakland and San Francisco was famously delayed by 10 days after the catastrophic earthquake that devastated the Bay Area. Four consecutive days of rain in The Bay pushed Game 6 of 1962 World Series between the Giants and Yankees back four days. 

Two of the most famous World Series games of all time were impacted by rain. Game 6 of the 1975 World Series (a.k.a. The Carlton Fisk Keeps It Fair Game) was rained out three straight days before it could be played. Game 7 of the 1986 World Series (the Game After The Bill Buckner Game) was washed out and delayed by a day.

But the most recent example of wet weather complicating a Fall Classic Schedule was also in Philly, during the 2008 World Series. With the Phillies up 3-1 in the series over Tampa, a torrential downpour in the middle of the clinching Game 5 led to a suspended game after the top of the sixth, with the score tied 2-2. The final handful of innings wouldn’t be completed for another two days. The Phillies won that game 4-3, clinching their first title in almost 30 years. Will history repeat itself?

What does the rainout mean for this year’s schedule?

Instead of erasing a travel day between Games 5 and 6, which is what happened a few weeks ago during the Guardians-Yankees ALDS, the entire World Series will be pushed back by a day. That means Game 3 will take place Tuesday evening, Game 4 on Wednesday and Game 5 on Thursday, with the travel day Friday. Potential Games 6 and 7 would be in Houston on Saturday and Sunday. First pitch for all games will be at 8:03 p.m. ET, and all games air on FOX and the FOX Sports App.

Does this impact things on the field?

Absolutely. 

Minutes after the game was canceled Monday, Phillies skipper Rob Thomson announced his team would switch up their pitching plan. The club’s typical No. 3 starter, Ranger Suárez, who was moved from Game 3 to Game 4 to give him an extra day of rest after his brief relief appearance in Game 1, will now start the postponed Game 3 on Tuesday night. 

That means Aaron Nola, who started Game 1 in Houston, will start Game 4 on full rest Wednesday night. Game 5 probably will belong to Noah Syndergaard, Game 3’s original starter. But if Thor is thrown into an emergency relief role in either of the next two games, Kyle Gibson will start Game 5. That allows Philly to give their exhausted, stuff-depleted ace Zack Wheeler a few extra days of rest before a start in a potential Game 6.

This new plan has three main benefits for the Phillies.

1. Suárez could pitch on full rest in a Game 7. 

Because Suárez was initially slated to throw Game 4 on Tuesday, he would have been on short rest in a Game 7. But now that Game 3 is on Tuesday and a potential Game 7 would come Sunday instead of Saturday, Súarez would start that game. Since a shaky first start against the Braves in the NLDS in which he walked five, the young Venezuelan lefty has been nails for Philly in October. He showed well in his NLCS start against San Diego and then came out of the bullpen in Game 5 to escape a jam and send Philly to the Fall Classic. Getting two starts out of him instead of one could be a game changer for the Phils.

Nola could throw on short rest in a Game 7, too

Same deal as Suárez. Nola will still pitch Wednesday, as was the original plan. That’s just Game 4 instead of Game 5. As such, Nola should be available to provide at least three innings in relief against Houston in a potential Game 7. 

Wheeler gets some extra rest

The Phillies ace looked like a diminished version of himself against Houston in Game 2. His velocity was down. His off-speed stuff lacked its usual bite. As a result, the Astros tattered him for five runs. It was easily the worst start of Wheeler’s postseason thus far, a postseason in which he’d been wonderfully dominant. 

After the postponement Monday, Thomson insisted Wheeler’s reduced capacity was a result of fatigue and not a return of the elbow injury that left him sidelined for a month late in the season. At this point, Wheeler could use every additional hour to recharge his juicebox for his fifth and final postseason start.

But what about the Astros?

Dusty Baker and the Astros are not zagging. Lance McCullers will still pitch Game 3 and Cristian Javier will still pitch Game 4. Even though Houston would be able to bring AL Cy Young favorite Justin Verlander back on full rest for Game 4, they’re opting to stay with Javier in that spot. That makes perfect sense, as Verlander hasn’t been quite so sharp this October, while Javier carved the Yankees to shreds in his ALCS Game 3 start. Plus, as Baker admitted, the opportunity to give Verlander an extra day off was just too alluring to pass up.

So who does the off day benefit more?

The Phillies. Easily. They pivoted to what they see as a more optimal set-up. The Astros stayed pat. It's as simple as that.

The shuffled calendar somewhat mitigates Houston’s pitching depth advantage over Philly, which probably was their single biggest edge in this series. McCullers and Javier are both better than Suárez and Syndergaard. The gap between Javier and the current, super-power-less version of Syndergaard is particularly stark. The more innings the Phillies can squeeze out of Wheeler, Nola and Súarez, the better. 

Houston wants to get to Philly’s pitching underbelly. Philly wants to keep it hidden. This rainout gives them a better opportunity to do so.

Jake Mintz, the louder half of @CespedesBBQ is a baseball writer for FOX Sports. He’s an Orioles fan living in New York City, and thus, he leads a lonely existence most Octobers. If he’s not watching baseball, he’s almost certainly riding his bike. Follow him on Twitter @Jake_Mintz.