Los Angeles Dodgers: The implications of winning Game 3

1. Alex Cora went for the kill, now has a potential pitching disaster

Alex Cora has made moves this postseason that is Dave Roberts made would be questioned by the entire fanbase. For the majority of the postseason, the Red Sox have been going for the throat and have burned pitchers in particular spots.

Until now, that has not come back to haunt the Red Sox. Boston has not had to pay the repercussions of using a starting pitcher out of the bullpen in a big game because it has worked for Cora. If the Red Sox won last night, it does not matter at all who pitches today, the team would have had a 3-0 lead.

Now, with just a one-game lead, the Red Sox likely have to turn to Drew Pomeranz (who has not started since August 7 and had a 6.08 ERA this season) and Eduardo Rodriguez.

Both Pomeranz and Rodriguez are former starters with Rodriguez being the more prolific of the two. Rodriguez can spin a gem against LA, especially the way the team has been hitting, but it burns Cora’s best left-handed reliever for Game 5 and potential Game 6.

And let’s not forget: David Price pitched yesterday and probably isn’t available for more than a batter or two and the rest of the bullpen has been used pretty frequently. While the Dodgers also had to use their pen, the team also has a traditional starter in Rich Hill on the mound.

This could snowball quickly for the Red Sox, who are just hoping that the pitching staff can hang around in the game for the offense to come out. If the Red Sox offense scores a ton of runs it won’t really matter.

However, if the Red Sox see the pitching staff give up three or four runs in the first four innings, it is going to be a long night and is going to affect Game 5 as well.