World Series 2023: What we've learned about Rangers, D-backs - ESPN

Two games into the 2023 World Series, there has been plenty of excitement for both the Texas Rangers and Arizona Diamondbacks.

First the Rangers took the opener in thrilling fashion, thanks to dramatic home runs by Corey Seager and Adolis Garcia that had Globe Life Field rocking.

Then, in Game 2, the Diamondbacks evened the series on the strength of a dominant start by Merrill Kelly.

As both teams make their way to Phoenix ahead of Game 3 on Monday at Chase Field, we asked our ESPN MLB experts to break down what we've seen so far — and where this World Series will go from here.

Alden Gonzalez: That the depth of the Rangers' lineup hasn't really shown up. The big home runs by Corey Seager and Adolis Garcia in Game 1 masked the fact that the Rangers got very little production from the bottom half of their lineup. In Game 2, against a very sharp Merrill Kelly, their entire offense recorded only three hits — two singles and a solo homer — and didn't draw a walk through the first seven innings. The Rangers have combined for 13 hits through the first two games.

Buster Olney: How deeply some of the key hitters are slumping. Christian Walker looked completely lost in his plate appearances in Game 1, and in Game 2, when he hit the ball hard — rockets down the third base line and up the middle — he wasn't rewarded with hits, and slowly walked back to the dugout. Nathaniel Lowe is such a good offensive player, but he, like Walker, seems to be feeling for the ball at the plate right now, trying to find his swing. But as Tommy Pham told Torey Lovullo after being benched in the NLCS, all it takes is one swing, one good plate appearance. It'll be interesting to see if the managers make any changes with the slumping players.

Jeff