More than any other sport, baseball follows conventional wisdom. This is especially so in October, when pennants and World Series champions are on the line. Over the first weekend of the postseason, a trio of managers sent inexperienced starting pitchers to the mound in games with serious playoff implications. In some cases there may have been a lack of another viable option, but in all three outings the relative newcomer came out smelling like roses. Matt Moore, Rays Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon is the most likely to go against the grain, so it is no surprise that he started 22-year-old Matt Moore in Game 1 of the ALDS against the favored Rangers. Moore was making his first postseason start just a few days after making his first Major League start on Sept. 22 against the Yankees (he won). Using an easy and repeatable delivery, the left-hander shutdown the Rangers over seven innings with six strikeouts and just two hits allowed. He threw a first-pitch strike 62% of the time and never looked as though he did not belong on the mound. The opposing starter, C.J. Wilson, allowed six runs in five innings as the Rays won 9-0 to take an early advantage in their best-of-five series. Wilson went 16-7 during the regular season with a 2.94 ERA and 206 strikeouts. He is expected to be one of the top starting pitchers on the free agent market this winter. Moore pitched so well that we could see him start Game 2 of the ALCS if the Rays are able to advance. James Shields is line up to pitch a potential decisive fifth game against the Rangers and David Price would be rested for the opening game of the next round. Ivan Nova, Yankees Entering the series as the No. 2 starter for the Yankees, Ivan Nova turned out to be their pseudo starter after Game 1 was postponed after less than two innings on Friday night. Taking over for CC Sabathia, the rookie right-hander dominated the Tigers over six-plus innings. He struck out five batters and allowed just four hits before the bullpen failed to strand his runners. Three of those hits came before he was removed in the top of the ninth inning. Two runs were charged to Nova as Luis Ayala allowed two hits in a third of an inning. If asked six months ago, Yankees manager Joe Girardi would have probably named A.J. Burnett or Phil Hughes his No. 2 starter in the postseason. With New York having signed veterans Freddy Garcia and Bartolo Colon to minor-league deals, perhaps Girardi would have been mentioned one of those two. Instead, after a 16-4 record and 3.70 ERA in his first full Major League season, Nova got the call with the pressure of winning a 28th World Series title on the line. Like Moore, it was his first playoff pitching appearance. Nova does look like a veteran when you compare his 34 career starts to the one Moore came into the playoffs with. Nova will have a chance to submit a worthy encore this month, whether it is Game 5 against the Tigers or Game 2 of the ALCS at Yankee Stadium. Max Scherzer, Tigers The most experienced pitcher of the trio, Scherzer has 101 regular-season starts to his credit over the least four years. Detroit manager Jim Leyland sent him to the mound on Sunday afternoon at Yankee Stadium with the possibility of dropping into an 0-2 hole. Scherzer, who had been hit-or-miss during the regular season with a 4.43 ERA, did not even have to work out of trouble against the Bronx Bombers. Over six innings, the right-hander allowed just two hits and struck out five batters. He silenced an offense that exploded for eight runs the night before, including six RBIs from Robinson Cano. The second baseman walked, struck out and singled to shallow left against Scherzer. Joaquin Benoit and Jose Valverde combined to allow three runs over the final three innings and give the Yankees a chance to send the game to extra innings or even win it in the bottom of the ninth with two men out and two out with Cano at the plate. Thankfully, they did not completely ruin the masterpiece of Scherzer.