With the Rays facing elimination Tuesday night in World Series Game 6, Blake Snell rose to the occasion. Snell struck out half of the Dodgers batters he faced, overpowering them with fastballs up in the zone and getting nasty movement on his breaking balls. It’s hard to make a 1-0 lead feel safe against the deepest lineup in baseball, but the former AL Cy Young award winner did everything possible to assert his dominance.
Alas, that wasn’t enough for Kevin Cash. Rather than let Snell face the top of the order for a third time, Tampa Bay’s manager put the game in the hands of his reputable bullpen with one out in the bottom of the sixth inning.