00:00The temperature is going to be in the 40s and 50s, and there's going to be 40-mile-an-hour
00:05wind gusts and sustained winds in the double-digit category, and a lot of that will be blowing in at
00:11Progressive.
00:12So it's going to be a challenge offensively here tonight, but defensively, two teams that should be sound enough to
00:21be able to not give away free runs here.
00:25But, you know, my fear is with the Tampa Bay Rays, same thing that it was if you like the
00:31Dodgers.
00:33Not a great time to go cold, and that feels like exactly what has happened here with Tampa, where, you
00:40know, the bats have gone a little bit cold here, and every time we keep thinking they'll snap out of
00:45it.
00:45Well, we did the same thing with the Dodgers, and they never really snapped out of it.
00:49But the Guardians, it wasn't like they were a wealth of all fans either, Greg.
00:54But it looks like they got hot later in the process and have seemed to have maintained the big hits
01:01at the big moments, which is, that's what they do.
01:05So it's going to be a fascinating game tonight, given the elements as well.
01:10Yeah, and with Cleveland, you wouldn't be shocked if they scored one run in one or two runs in one.
01:18You'd be shocked if they scored five runs in one tonight.
01:20Like, that's kind of, that's how crazy it is, that they just rely so much on their pitching and defense.
01:27And look, if the Rays are not going to hit, then there's no question that they're going to have a
01:34problem tonight.
01:35So Armstrong is just basically, I'm reading what they're saying here about this game, so here's the understanding.
01:41So Armstrong opens up for Cleveland, and he faces the righties that are at the top of the lineup.
01:48Immediately after that's done, and it could even come in the first inning, or at the very latest, the second,
01:53they'll bring in Joey Cantillo.
01:55And then he pitches three or maybe even four innings for Cleveland.
02:02Then they could go a lot of different directions.
02:04They could go back to Gattis.
02:05They could go to some other guys.
02:08You know, they want to hold back Foster Griffin.
02:10They don't want to have to use him in this.
02:11They want to maybe start him in a future game.
02:13But, Joe, is the weather going to be the story tonight?
02:17Look, it's hard for me to say.
02:18We're an hour and a half away, and I would suspect that this game is going to get played,
02:23even if it gets played into midnight at this point,
02:25because you can't make people attend a playoff game and then come back the next day.
02:30Generally speaking, you can't do that.
02:32So I think Tampa Bay, if they can get an early lead in this one,
02:38I know Cleveland came back and they won the late game yesterday or two days ago
02:42when Petey Halpin hit that home run,
02:43but I would feel a lot better about Tampa if I knew they had a 1-0 lead
02:47or a 2-0 lead in one of the first couple of innings
02:50because this is the best it's going to get for the Rays today.
02:53Like, this is it.
02:54But after this, you know they could go back to some of their pitchers again
02:57with Griffin and Messick and Gavin Williams.
03:00And at this point, Gavin Williams may be either the best pitcher
03:03or second-best pitcher left in the postseason.
03:05I mean, he has been outstanding.
03:07No one has been able to hit him.
03:08And at this point, him going into Game 6 or a Game 7,
03:11you would favor Cleveland in that spot.
03:14So Rays, as long as they could get back to St. Pete,
03:17I think it gives them a great chance to win
03:19because Cleveland could certainly be in a Game 7 situation
03:22while it may be Joe all-hands on deck.
03:24The usage for Cleveland's arms is going to be out of control
03:27between now and Game 7.
03:29So important for Tampa to win this one today.
03:33I do think eventually it gets back to St. Pete,
03:36but let's give Cleveland the credit they deserve.
03:38They played some great baseball, great defense,
03:41low-scoring games.
03:42Kate Smith, he has an average name,
03:45but he's not an average pitcher.
03:47He's just as good as any of these guys in the ninth inning.
03:51And this is another team.
03:55Interesting manager dichotomy here, too, with these guys, right?
03:59Cash and Voight.
04:00We wondered whether or not, given the opportunity that, you know,
04:04would Murphy go for the kill shot last night
04:07if he had the opportunity to do it?
04:09Well, he so happened to have a, you know,
04:11he pushed all the right buttons, having Ashby available to go,
04:15the two-plus innings there,
04:17and they didn't need anybody else, worked out in his favor.
04:21Is Voight of that makeup, or is he more the analytical guy?
04:26Because it feels like he's more the matchup guy,
04:29this is what it said, this is what we're going to do.
04:32He's big on the right-hander versus lefty, lefty versus righty.
04:36I don't know.
04:37Is he a guy that would go to Kate Smith
04:39if he's got an opportunity to go up 3-1?
04:42Yeah, so Voight is a former player
04:45who was literally out of the game for a year or two
04:48and then immediately became a manager.
04:50Took over for Francona, if I'm not mistaken.
04:53Francona, yep.
04:54Terry Francona left, and then he went to Cincinnati.
04:57So to think that Steven Voight,
04:59he's one manager of the year, I think, back-to-back years.
05:02To think that he's not a good manager is silly,
05:04but managing this game for Cleveland,
05:07and I'm not taking anything away from Voight,
05:09it's an organizational managed game.
05:11I mean, that's what's going on,
05:13is that in the meetings, like a lot of teams,
05:16they're having the meetings before the game,
05:18they go through the matchups.
05:19It's not like Voight doesn't have to make decisions,
05:21but a lot of these decisions are pre-made
05:24from a guy like this,
05:27who has established himself as a premium manager,
05:31but walked into a situation
05:33where the team was immediately winning.
