World Series Game 3 Open Thread: Royals at Giants

After a miserable Tuesday night, the Royals did exactly what they needed to do the next day - even the series. They did just that, landing an impressive punch right back to the face of the Giants in a 7-2 victory. The series is tied at one, and the two teams are now back at it at AT&T Park.

Jeremy Guthrie has been the Royals' best starting pitcher since September began, posting a 3-1 record with a 2.35 ERA since September 1. Included in that span was his first-ever playoff start; Guthrie hurled five innings of one-run ball in game 3 of last week's ALDS. It sounds strange to say, but the gutty veteran may be the Royals starter that we should trust the most in this type of a game. Guthrie did not face the Giants in the regular season.

On the other side, San Francisco starter Tim Hudson is heading in a different direction. He began the year with a sizzle, posting an ERA under 2.00 through his first 13 starts. It appears possible that the veteran ran out of gas as the season went on, however, as he is just 2-7 with a 4.73 ERA in 13 games since the All-Star Break. The 39-year-old will make a bit of history on Friday night, as he will become the third oldest pitcher to ever make a World Series start. Hudson faced the Royals back on August 9 at Kauffman Stadium - he held the Royals scoreless through four innings, but an Alex Gordon solo home run opened the scoring in the fifth. He was eventually chased from the game after allowing the first four batters to reach in the seventh inning, finishing with a run of 6.0 innings, six hits, and three earned runs.

The Royals are an astounding 51-34 including playoffs on the road this season, and they've never needed to continue that run more than they do right now. The goal seems simple - take two of the next three in San Francisco and return to Kauffman Stadium with two chances to clinch the whole thing in front of your home crowd.

As difficult as it's been at times, I've tried to adopt a "just enjoy every pitch of this" attitude. Worst-case scenario, the Royals will still be 54 outs away from elimination after tonight's game. Enjoy every minute of this, and let's hope that the Boys in Blue still have three more wins in them.