ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) -Chase Utley hit a two-run homer and Cole Hamels escaped a bases-loaded jam, giving the Philadelphia Phillies a 2-0 lead over the Tampa Bay Rays after three innings in the World Series opener Wednesday night.
Hamels wriggled out of bases-loaded trouble in the third when B.J. Upton grounded sharply into an inning-ending double play, his second of the game.
Upton showed off his strong arm in center field, throwing out speedy Shane Victorino at the plate on a shallow fly ball to end the second.
After eliminating Milwaukee and the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL playoffs, the Phillies are looking for their second World Series title. Playing their 126th season, the lone championship came in 1980.
In fact, the Phillies have more losses than any franchise in pro sports. And the city of Philadelphia hasn’t had a major pro sports title to celebrate since the NBA’s 76ers won it all 25 years ago.
er won more than 70 games in its first 10 seasons before surging to the AL pennant this year with playoff series wins over the Chicago White Sox and Boston Red Sox.
The Rays were trying to become the first major league team to win a championship one year after finishing with baseball’s worst record.
Fans have taken notice, too. The sold-out crowd at quirky Tropicana Field including several folks sporting mohawks – just like Rays manager Joe Maddon.
Jayson Werth drew a one-out walk from Scott Kazmir in the first inning and Utley pulled a 2-2 pitch into the right-field stands for his second home run this postseason.
During the regular season, Kazmir allowed only one home run to a left-handed hitter in 131 at-bats. Boston slugger David Ortiz connected off the hard-throwing lefty on Sept. 15.
Utley became the 34th player to homer in his first World Series at-bat. Dustin Pedroia and Bobby Kielty did it last year for Boston against Colorado.
Akinori Iwamura reached on an infield single to open the bottom half when first baseman Ryan Howard curiously held onto a grounder rather than flip to Hamels for what probably would have been a close play. Instead, Iwamura easily beat Howard in a foot race to the bag.
But the defensive lapse didn’t cost Hamels, who quickly induced a double-play grounder from Upton.
He lifted a shallow fly to center and Victorino tested Upton, who threw a one-hop strike to the plate for an inning-ending double play.
Kazmir pumped his first and Upton received hearty congratulations in the dugout.
Hamels struck out Evan Longoria and Willy Aybar in a perfect second. Werth hit a leadoff double in the third but was stranded at third when Kazmir fanned Howard and Pat Burrell.
Both high school left-handers, Kazmir and Hamels were selected two picks apart in the 2002 amateur draft and comparisons have followed them ever since.
Hamels, the NLCS MVP against Los Angeles, went 3-0 with a 1.23 ERA in three playoff starts. He was working on six days’ rest after winning the clincher against the Dodgers.
Kazmir pitched six shutout innings of two-hit ball in his previous start, Game 5 of the ALCS against Boston.
Backup catcher Chris Coste was Philadelphia’s designated hitter. Maddon made a surprise move before the series even began, starting utility man Ben Zobrist in right field against Hamels rather than Rocco Baldelli or Fernando Perez.
Zobrist singled in the third but was stranded.
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