Lance McCullers Jr. had a tough night in Game 3 of the World Series as the Houston Astros fell into a 2-1 hole.
McCullers surrendered seven runs, all of which came on home runs and the Philadelphia Phillies managed to chase him in the fifth inning.
Many were suggesting that McCullers may have been tipping his pitches in Game 3.
The right-hander gave up five home runs in the Astros’ 7-0 loss.
After the game, McCullers was asked about potentially tipping his pitches, refuting the idea and simply chalking it up to the Phillies having a good game plan against him and executing better than he did.
“This has nothing to do with tipping,” McCullers said. “Clearly they had a good game plan against me and they executed better than I did.”
— Brian McTaggart (@brianmctaggart) November 2, 2022
McCullers Responds To Pitch-Tipping Theory
McCullers only lasted 4.1 innings against the Phillies.
But McCullers is clearly not buying the idea that he may have been tipping his pitches.
Still, the Phillies seemed to be able to find his weak spot and exploit it in Game 3, giving themselves a 2-1 series lead.
McCullers has struggled in his last two starts this postseason.
In Game 4 of the ALCS against the New York Yankees, he lasted five innings but allowed four runs, three of which were earned.
Last night, the Phillies were able to execute their game plan and chase him early.
McCullers’ postseason ERA rose to 5.87 thanks to last night’s tough outing.
Still, McCullers doesn’t seem to believe that he was tipping his pitches, but rather that he just had an uncharacteristic outing, and the Phillies were able to knock him out of the game earlier than anticipated.
The Astros will send Cristian Javier to the mound for Game 4 in hopes of evening the World Series at two games apiece.
NEXT: Lance McCullers Jr. Made Unfortunate World Series History