The Opener: World Series, Scherzer, Angels

As the World Series continues, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:

1. The World Series heads to Arizona:

With the World Series now tied up at one game a piece, the clubs will square off this evening for Game 3 after arriving in Arizona yesterday. On the heels of Merrill Kelly’s one-run nine-strikeout gem in Game 2, the Diamondbacks will turn to right-hander Brandon Pfaadt this evening. Despite posting a lackluster 5.72 ERA in 96 regular season innings this year, Pfaadt has looked good as the club’s third starter this postseason, with a 2.70 ERA across four starts and 16 strikeouts across his last two appearances.

Dominant as he’s looked in recent appearances, however, manager Torey Lovullo has consistently stuck with a quick hook regarding the 25-year-old righty. Pfaadt’s 5 2/3 inning performance against the Phillies in Game 3 of the NLCS is his longest postseason outing to date, and Pfaadt was at just 70 pitches when Lovullo handed the game to the bullpen. We’ll find out tonight whether Pfaadt can keep his recent success up or if he’s earned additional trust from Lovullo and the Arizona front office with his performance this postseason, as the game is set to begin at 7:03pm CT this evening.

2. Scherzer’s playoff homecoming:

Pitching opposite Pfaadt in tonight’s game is veteran ace and future Hall of Famer Max Scherzer, who is set to face off against the team that drafted him eleventh overall in the 2006 draft to kick off what has been an illustrious professional career. Scherzer ultimately pitched in just two seasons with the Diamondbacks, posting a 3.86 ERA and 3.73 FIP in 226 1/3 innings of work for the club before being shipped to Detroit in trade. Of course, Scherzer has become one of the league’s finest starters since then, racking up three Cy Young awards and more than 3,000 strikeouts since leaving Arizona.

Scherzer’s homecoming comes with its fair share of question marks for the Rangers. The veteran righty missed over a month with a teres major strain that was initially expected to end his season in mid-September, and he was not at his best upon returning in the ALCS against the Astros. Across two games against Houston this postseason, Scherzer surrendered seven runs in 6 2/3 innings of work for the Rangers, striking out six while walking three and allowing two home runs. In addition to the rust from more than a month away from the mound, however, Scherzer recently revealed he was dealing with a cut near the nail on his thumb that impacted his performance against the Astros, though he added the issue shouldn’t continue to impact him going forward. That should come as a relief to fans in Texas, as a strong start from the 39-year-old would put the Rangers in excellent position to head into Game 4 with a series lead.

3. What are the Angels looking for in a new manager?

While the Red Sox have wrapped up their GM search and the Giants landed Bob Melvin to replace Gabe Kapler as their manager, plenty of front office and managerial searches are continuing around the league in the background of the postseason. Among those searches is that of the Angels, who are looking for a new manager to replace outgoing skipper Phil Nevin. It’s been a somewhat curious search so far, as while reports have indicated that the club prefers to hire a veteran manager to lead the club into an uncertain 2024 campaign, many of the known candidates don’t fit that description.

Former Angels players Benji Gil, Darin Erstad, Torii Hunter, and Tim Salmon are all names reportedly under consideration, despite the fact that no member of that group has experience as a major league manager. Erstad and Salmon have experience as head coaches of collegiate and prep programs, respectively, and but Gil is the only one of the group to serve in a major league dugout since retiring as a player; he’s served on the Anaheim coaching staff since 2022 in addition to several stints as a manager in Mexico. That said, some names who wouldn’t be rookie managers have been floated as well. Former big league managers Buck Showalter and Ron Roenicke have both seen their names come up in relation to the Angels’ manager job, with mutual interest being reported between Anaheim and Showalter in particular.