As the World Series comes to an end, the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Tampa Bay Rays are neck and neck. With some of the best players in the MLB on each team, it is no wonder these two teams are on top.
The Los Angeles Dodgers are currently leading 3-2 against the Rays. The LA Dodgers, a perennially good team, have pitcher Clayton Kershaw. The Rays have pitchers Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow.
The Dodgers’ pitcher, Clayton Kershaw, is considered to be one of the best pitchers of all time, and his career has flourished in the past decade. However, his performance this season has shown that while he still is a force to be reckoned with on the pitcher’s mound, he is approaching the twilight years of his career.
Kershaw won his first CY Young award, which is given to the best pitcher in the MLB, in 2011. Kershaw won the award two more times in 2013 and 2014. In the current World Series, he had six wins and two losses. His earned runs allowed in the recent World Series games was amazing, allowing only 2.25 runs per nine innings.
On average, Kershaw struck out more than nine batters per game. Given this statistic, more than one-third of the batters were unable to hit his pitches. Kershaw also allowed, on average, less than one hitter on base to get a hit or a walk per inning.
The first Rays’ pitcher, Blake Snell, is also considered to be one of the best in the league. He won the CY Young award in 2018. This season, he has 3.24% earned runs allowed and in one game, recorded six strikeouts in just three innings. A strike record as good as this means that six out of nine opposing batters were unable to put the ball in play.
The second pitcher for the Rays, Tyler Glasnow, is considered to be the best pitcher on the team, although he got hit on more than expected this season. He has five wins and one loss in the 2020 World Series and an earned runs allowed of 4.0 runs per nine innings.
These statistics are odd for Glasnow because he is famous for his nasty pitches, especially his curveballs. It was these curveballs that made him the best pitcher in the league in 2019. During last season, Glasnow’s curveball generated 59 strikeouts and zero home runs. His pitches spun so fast last season that they were considered to test the limits of what humans are able to track and react to. About 20% of the pitches fooled batters into swinging when the ball was far beyond their strike zone.
Snell and Glasnow formed a deadly one-two punch in the 2020 postseason. Both pitchers started five games and pitched about 24 innings each.
It is evident that a great quantity of talent exists between the Dodgers and the Rays, and this has led to their success during this season. These players will be one to watch as skilled teams go head to head in the final games of the World Series.
