ST. LOUIS -- St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony La Russa planned to take advantage of Wednesday's World Series rainout to check out "Moneyball" at a local cinema. His Texas counterpart, Ron Washington, was a character in "Moneyball," so he presumably passed on the flick and enjoyed a nice, relaxing dinner away from the park.

Still, the postponement of Game 6 didn't absolve La Russa and Washington of their managerial duties. They showed up at Busch Stadium while players arrived for treatment or work in the indoor cages, then met the press for 15 minutes each. La Russa was coy and occasionally playful during his interview session, while Washington was direct, matter-of-fact and downright passionate with one or two of his responses.

Justin ("Rain Man") Verlander was unavailable for comment on the state of Missouri meteorology, but the two World Series managers and their players addressed some prominent issues that will dominate the conversation over the next day or two. Here are five big questions moving forward, as the Fall Classic slogs toward a conclusion:

1. What does the rainout mean for the pitching matchups?

Nothing changes with the Game 6 starters. Jaime Garcia will go for the Cardinals and be opposed by Colby Lewis. Both pitchers were terrific in their first meeting, a 2-1 Texas victory in Game 2. So we might see another tight, low-scoring game, with the benches and bullpens playing a significant role.

The question, obviously, is what happens in Game 7. Washington is sticking with his original plan: Even though Derek Holland was lights-out in his World Series start and would be available for a seventh game on full rest, the Rangers will go with Matt Harrison. He started out relatively well in Game 3, then unraveled after a missed call by first-base umpire Ron Kulpa, and Albert Pujols teed off on the Texas bullpen to give St. Louis a 16-7 victory.

Colby Lewis will still get the ball for the Rangers in Game 6. He'll just get it a day later. AP Photo/Paul Sancya

Washington is sure to be criticized if things don't work out. But judging from his show of resolve in support of Harrison, it's easy to see why his players love him so much. Washington isn't going to bend to media or fan pressure even when it's the most expedient course.

"Harrison has been a big part of this team all year," Washington said. "I am not changing the things that I've been doing all year. That's why we are where we are, and that's why I'm saying Harrison."

If the Cardinals stick to their regular rotation, Kyle Lohse would start a seventh and deciding game. But Chris Carpenter has made it known that he would be available Friday on short rest, and it's hard to imagine La Russa not taking him up on that offer.

Carpenter led the National League with 237 1/3 innings during the regular season, and ranked fifth in the majors with 3,613 pitches thrown. He's tacked on 30 innings and 451 more pitches in the postseason, so it would be understandable if he's a bit worn out at this point.

Carpenter pitched poorly on short rest against Philadelphia in the National League Division Series, but La Russa is keeping his options open. For what it's worth, La Russa and pitching coach Dave Duncan have ruled out using Carpenter in relief in Game 6, on what would typically be a between-starts throw day.

"Whether it's Chris Carpenter or anybody else, we will not jeopardize an arm," La Russa said. "Three days' rest -- he's already done that. So we would all feel better about [Game] 7 if we needed him."

2. How are things with the injury guys?

Matt Holliday hit .435 (10-for-23) against Milwaukee in the division series, but he's batting only .167 (3-for-18) against the Rangers. On a positive note, Holliday has drawn five walks in the World Series. And he saw a whopping 35 pitches against C.J. Wilson and the Texas bullpen in Game 5.

Amid speculation that he's bothered by the hand injury that forced him to miss considerable time in September, Holliday characterized his health as "fine."

"I've had some good at-bats, and I feel pretty good about where I'm at," Holliday said.

La Russa thinks Holliday's problems are related more to timing issues than injury concerns. Holliday missed 10 days in September with an inflamed tendon in his hand, returned down the stretch, then reaggravated the injury in the final week of the season.

"I hesitate to say it because I hate to add pressure to a guy," La Russa said. "But I think it's very possible that one of the next two games, Matt could be our hitting hero. Every time he takes an at-bat, he gets closer. He just needs not to force it."

Rangers center fielder Josh Hamilton, who's suffering from a strained groin, showed up at Busch Stadium and played some long toss and swung a bat in the cage. The cooler weather in St. Louis won't help him any, but at this point, Hamilton will give it what he's got and hope for the best. Then he'll find out for sure if his injury really is a sports hernia, and whether it will require surgery over the winter.

3. What's the state of the bullpens?

Assuming the bullpen phones at Busch Stadium are fully operational, both teams should be fine.