Simulated World Series: Astros take advantage of Phillies errors to win rain-delayed Game 3

Ever wish your favorite team, after an especially painful loss, could have a do-over?

Even though the Philadelphia Phillies were blown out in Game 3 of our Simulated World Series, the real-life Game 3 rainout has completely changed the dynamic. So ... using the Dynasty League Baseball online simulation, USA TODAY Sports' Steve Gardner and ESPN's Eric Karabell are pre-playing the rest of the series to provide some insight into the key matchups and strategy fans can expect to see in the Fall Classic.

Sim Series Game 3: McCullers, Phillies' fielding flubs pave way for Astros win

While a rainout altered the Philadelphia Phillies' pitching plans, the Houston Astros wisely stuck with Lance McCullers on the mound -- and he delivered six strong innings to help the Astros secure a 6-2 victory in a rescheduled Game 3 of USA TODAY Sports' annual Simulated World Series.

McCullers (1-0) struck out eight, allowing two runs and five hits, before turning things over to the lights-out Houston bullpen. Meanwhile, the Astros took advantage of some defensive lapses by the Phillies to score four unearned runs, which turned out to be the difference in the game.

BOX SCORE:  Astros 6, Phillies 2

FULL PLAY-BY-PLAY: Astros unleash barrage of doubles in convincing win

How it happened

With an extra day of rest, the Phillies turned to left-hander Ranger Suarez as their Game 3 starter in place of veteran righty Noah Syndergaard. The move seemed to pay off as Suarez expertly worked his way out of several sticky situations in the early going. He stranded runners at third base in each of the first three innings while his teammates staked him to a 1-0 in the bottom of the third on Rhys Hoskins' two-out RBI single to center.

However, the Astros came back in the top of the fourth when Philadelphia third baseman Alec Bohm made a wild throw to first on what would have been an inning-ending ground ball that allowed Alex Bregman to score the tying run. Given an extra out, Martin Maldonado doubled in a run to give Houston a 2-1 lead.

The Astros' Kyle Tucker drove in a run with an RBI single in the fifth, but Hoskins answered again with a solo homer to right-center in the bottom of the inning to make it 3-2.

Doubles by Maldonado and Altuve gave Houston a two-run cushion in the sixth and the Astros added to their lead in the seventh when a misplayed ground ball by Bohm opened the door to two more runs.

What to watch in (the rescheduled) Game 3

Astros' arms: The rainout does somewhat lessen the considerable advantage Houston has with its pitching depth, but McCullers still looks primed to deliver a quality start. He was especially tough on left-handed hitters this year, holding them to a .165/.302/.253 slash line over his 47 2/3 innings of work. That edge could be important when facing the likes of lefty sluggers Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper.

Despite pitching in only eight games and not making his season debut until August because of a flexor tendon injury, McCullers is a playoff veteran, making his 19th career appearance in the postseason (2.77 ERA in 68 1/3 innings).

Defensive issues: It's been said before, but it bears repeating ... the Phillies have some serious limitations on defense and it could come back to haunt them. Dynasty League Baseball assigns defensive range and error ratings to each player -- and three of the Phillies' eight position players (Bohm at third base, Schwarber in left field and Nick Castellanos in right)  have "D" range ratings.

While those weren't a factor on any specific play in Game 3, Bohm's 75 (out of 100) error rating at third did. His bad throw in the fourth opened the door to two unearned runs and his misplayed grounder in the seventh led to two more Astros runs.

Lefty mashers: While the Phillies' switch to southpaw Suarez is an upgrade over Syndergaard, it could be a benefit for several Astros hitters. Leadoff man Jose Altuve hit .340/.426/.660 against left-handers during the regular season. Also outfielder Chas McCormick was an impressive .340/.409/.563 hitter vs. lefties. Suarez could also face a different DH as well with Aledmys Diaz (.766 OPS) slightly better than Trey Mancini (.655) against southpaws.

Double your pleasure: There were no home runs hit in the 52-degree Philadelphia weather, but the Astros made up for with seven doubles among their 13 hits in the game. Altuve and Maldonado led the way with two each.

They needed the extra-base pop, too, because the Astros were just 4-for-19 with runners in scoring position.

Bullpen brilliance: Houston relievers Hector Neris and Ryan Pressly held the Phillies scoreless over the final three innings, lowering the Astros' collective bullpen ERA during the Sim Series to 0.96 (one earned run in 9 1/3 innings).

Previous Sim Series results

Game 1: Astros 4, Phillies 3

Game 2: Astros 6, Phillies 5

Simulate your own World Series. Get a FREE one-month subscription to Dynasty League Baseball online by going to DynastyLeagueBaseball.com, selecting the monthly option and entering code USA2 at checkout.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Simulated World Series Game 3: Astros take advantage after rainout