In a stunning comeback, Kansas City Royals completely turned the table on the San Francisco Giants with a 7-2 win in Game 2 of 2014 World Series championship match at Kauffman Stadium. The Royals were thought to be finished when they lost 1-7 to the Giants in Game 1 despite Kansas City's previously undefeated postseason run.
World Series Game 3, 4, and 5 will be held at AT&T Park in downtown San Francisco, Calif, beginning Friday to Sunday. The games will start at 5:07 p.m. PT, and will be aired on FOX Television Network. Fans can watch all the games online or on their mobile devices via live stream below - free with subscription.
With the Series tied at 1-1, neither the SF Giants nor the KC Royals have disappointed their fans and the baseball fans in United States and around the world in this year's "Fall Classic," with the Giants starting strong, and the Royals making a furious comeback, tying the series. The scores swung between two extremes like a pendulum, showing that each team is just as capable as its opponent to shut out and score. Thus, the battle here depends on which team can continue their winning plays and minimize the mistakes.
Beginning from Game 3 to Game 5, the Royals vs. Giants 2014 championship matchups will shift to the San Francisco's home field at AT&T Park. Who will clinch this year's title? Is it too early to tell? Will this incredible series finish by this Sunday in favor of the Orange & Black of the Blues?
In a recap of Game 2, the Royals and Giants tied at 2-2 up until the fifth inning, but Kansas City pulled away with fun-run sixth inning, inciting the over 44,000 crowds to roar to their feet as they watch their home team reignite the hope for the championship since 1985.
The Royals chased Giants ace Jake Peavy and hammered the visitors' bullpen. Royals' Billy Butler hit a single, Salvador Perez plated two and Omar Infante swung the ball out the field for a homerun. From there, the KC pitching relievers tossed a 3 2/3 shutout innings of one-hit ball from the Giants.
"We showed them that we have fight in us and I think they knew that already," Butler said, according to MLB.com. "But we stepped up big there as a team. ... We feel confident going in there 1-1."
Royals pitcher Kelvin Herrera took over his team starter Yordano Ventura with 1 2/3 scoreless innings. The other two of Royals bullpen, Wade Davis and Greg Holland, each added a shutout inning.
Watch the World Series San Francisco Giants vs. Kansas City Royals Game 3 Live Stream Below!
Going into Game 3, Royals right-hander Jeremy Guthrie will start against Giants right-hander Tim Hudson. The intensity will only pick up now as history (16 of 19 teams who broke a 1-1 best-of-seven World Series tie with a Game 3 win went on to win the title) tells us that the team who continues the winning momentum in Game 3 will emerge as the champions.
In the postseason, Hudson has pitched 7 1/3 innings against the Nationals, and 6 1/3 in his lone National League Championship Series start against the St. Louis Cardinals. But there is a possibility that he wouldn't be able to cover the sixth. To cover for the expected, Giants manager Bruce Botchy must have a plan for the mid-innings. Two of his relief options - Jean Machi and Hunter Strickland - are struggling on the postseason, and the only other option would be Tim Lincecum, but he left Game 2 with tightness in his lower back. According to MLB.com, he was feeling better Thursday and was getting an MRI.
"If something's going on, then it's obvious we'll have to make the change [on the roster]," Bochy said. "But my hope is he's fine, and if he is, then I think he'll be good to go."
The Royals will most likely depend on Billy Butler, who drove in a pair of runs on RBI singles in their Game 2 win. In addition, the Royals' starting pitcher Guthrie, who had a 1.303 WHIP this season, is expected to give the Royals five strong innings and leave with a lead, in order to prepare for their unbeatable bullpen of Kelvin Herrera, Wade Davis and Greg Holland to close out the game.
Giants pitcher Jeremy Affeldt, who ended the five-run inning in Game 2, saw the bullpen's lack of execution as the reason for defeat, and not Botchy's matchups game.
"It's not that he didn't put the right guys in the right spots," he said, according to MLB.com. "We still have to execute the pitches. And if we don't do that, it's not always going to work out. I think he had the right guys in the right spots. We just happened to leave balls where they could be hit. He made the proper moves. We just didn't throw the pitches."
Related: San Francisco Giants Jeremy Affeldt: I Pitch for the 'Least of These'
"One thing about our pitching staff is we throw a lot of strikes and they swing at pitches over the plate," Affeldt said. "Hopefully we can make the adjustments. If you go back and look, they probably weren't quality pitches [in Game 2]. We all have to make better pitches. It's a correction. It's a simple correction by all of us. And we'll make it."
FOX's pregame show begins at 4:30 p.m. PT, with the first pitch scheduled for 5:07 p.m. PT. Royals right-hander Jeremy Guthrie will start against Giants right-hander Tim Hudson.
Radio Stations
San Francisco Giants - KNBR 680, ESPN Radio, KTRB 860
Kansas City Royals - KCSP 610, Royals Radio Network, ESPN Radio
World Series Schedule (Dates, Start Time)
Game 1 - Tuesday, Oct. 21, Kansas City Kauffman Stadium - Giants win, 7-1
Game 2 - Wednesday, Oct. 22, Kansas City Kauffman Stadium - Royals win, 7-2
Game 3 - Friday, Oct. 24 @ 8 p.m. ET at San Francisco AT&T Park
Game 4 - Saturday, Oct. 25 @ 8 p.m. ET at San Francisco AT&T Park
Game 5 - Sunday, Oct. 26 @ 8 p.m. ET at San Francisco AT&T Park
Game 6* - Tuesday, Oct. 28 @ 8 p.m. ET at Kansas City Kauffman Stadium
Game 7* - Wednesday, Oct. 29 @ 8 p.m. ET at Kansas City Kauffman Stadium.
*only if necessary
Live Stream: MLB.tv (requires subscription)
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