The San Francisco Giants took an early lead in the World Series after winning game one behind timely hitting by the Giants. The latest World Series odds have the Giants as -115 favorites with the total set at 7. The Rangers are in a 1 game to none deficit but will that be too much for them to recover from?

In game one of the World Series, Cliff Lee was supposed to be the untouchable anchor for the Texas Rangers. Instead Lee looked very hittable and allowed the Giants to score early and often putting pressure on both the bullpen and the hitters of the Rangers. With the current rotation set up the way it is, Lee is expected to pitch in game five, but that may have to change if the Rangers cannot get a few wins between now and then.

Cliff Lee was very hittable in game one and now has a World Series Earned Run Average (ERA) of over 11. The free swinging Giants roughed him up for right hits, seven runs, over four innings on a way to a game one win in the World Series. Unless the rotation is changed, Lee could possibly not see another start in the Fall Classic. It was not entirely Lee’s fault as he did not get much help in the field defensively.

The Rangers were nervous and it showed in the field as they committed four errors on the night. Texas became the first World Series team in six years to have four errors in a game, including two by Vladimir Guerrero in right field. Guerrero stumbled all night in right field and was exposed as a defensive weakness for the Rangers. The skilled hitters of the Giants often took balls to right field just to test Guerrero and this will be expected to happen more often in the series.

The Rangers are not dead yet, since there was only one game of the series played, however they have to be concerned with their overall play in game one. The starting pitching struggled, the bullpen could not stop the bleeding and the defense was atrocious. A win game two would go a long way to forgetting the loss in game one, but if they continue to struggle in all aspects of the game, this won’t happen anytime soon.

The Rangers will have to play better as a team if they hope to win the World Series.