How exactly am I supposed to sleep tonight? I haven’t had my adrenaline going like this since the Eagles/Falcons NFC Championship game in 2005. I was screaming and yelling and fist-pumping, and I’m pretty sure my cats think I may or may not kill them. On to my thoughts on the game:
- This is nothing like the NLDS. NOTHING. The drama and tension of this game was off the charts for me and nothing close the Brewers series. I thought that I would be able to watch this and just be happy we were here, and not get too crazy, but I was wrong. I was crazy, yelling, cursing, hitting the couch, pacing, saying things in front of people that I shouldn’t be saying. Oh boy. If we make the World Series, I might die.
- I’ve understood people’s dislike for Tim McCarver, but I’ve never really hated him, but tonight was the single worst commentated game I have ever watched. He couldn’t identify Hamels change-up AT ALL. On his 6th or 7th change-up of the game, he said “and Hamels throws his first change-up.” My girlfriend was calling him out. That wasn’t the only thing he was being straight out wrong on, but I’m not going to go off on a tangent here, let’s talk about the game.
- I feel so happy for Pat Burrell. He’s gone through some serious ups and downs here, from being the savior #1 overall pick to the subject of years of boos. He could have cursed out the fans and quit on this city several times, but he never did, even blocking a trade to Baltimore. Quietly, he’s turned from party boy to one of the hardest workers on the team. He only needs 9 HR to have the most HR’s in Phillies history by someone not named Schmidt; he’s 5th all-time for the Phils in RBI but you’d never know it. Before these last couple days, he looked like he would be remembered much like Bobby Abreu: good player, never got it done. Now? After 2 game-winning home runs in back-to-back games, he’s finally created himself a legacy to be proud of. Thanks, Pat.
- So I guess Utley feels alright, huh? Now let’s just get Howard going a little bit. They certainly looked willing to pitch to him today.
- Anyone else waiting for Furcal to throw a ball away? He’s been showing off his 98-mph fastball to first since his early days with the Braves, and he’s done it more than any SS I can remember against the Phils. Thanks, Raf! (By the way, it’s an entirely different ballgame when you keep him off base.)
- With Maddux coming out of the bullpen, you have to wonder whether this indicates that Kershaw or Lowe (on short rest) will be going in Game 4. I was hoping for Maddux; I think we would have crushed him.
- I hate watching Derek Lowe pitch. There is nothing more frustrating than watching weak ground-out after weak ground-out. Had he not kept a couple pitches up in the 6th, I would be fuming.
- Hamels is making a name for himself. 2-0 this playoffs with a 1.20 ERA. The most impressive inning was the 7th. We just got the lead and needed a shut down inning, and he was absolutely dominant. One more good start, and I’m anointing him a “big game pitcher.”
- It cannot be understated how well the bullpen has pitched all year. Madson and Lidge were dominant, and you cannot win in the playoffs without the guys shutting the door at the end. (Sorry, that was a Tim McCarver “duh” statement, but I never thought I’d say it about the Phillies.)
- Which Brett Myers do we see tomorrow? If you know the answer, you’re lying.
- Got to sleep. Playoff baseball is fun.
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{ 45 comments… read them below or add one }
feel so happy for Pat Burrell. He’s gone through some serious ups and downs here from being the savior #1 overall pick to the subject of years of boos. He could have cursed out the fans and quit on this city several times, but he never did, even blocking a trade to Baltimore. Quietly, he’s turned from party boy to one of the hardest workers on the team. He only needs 9 HR to have the most HR’s in Phillies history by someone not named Schmidt, he’s 5th all-time for the Phils in RBI but you’d never know it.
I don’t follow baseball but I am really happy for you guys. Let’s hope it will be a great season for all Philly teams, starting from Phillies.. crossing fingers
is the Phillies-Dodgers rivalry as heated as the Lakers-Sixers ??
dannie,
where is the Sixer summary from the Celric preseason opener ?
Celtics, sorry
Pete, even I can tell the difference between a changeup and a slider, especially with the gun showing the pitch speed. Great game with the pitchers all doing what we would hope. One thing that pissed me off? Burrell being replaced for defense in a one run game when he would be leading off the ninth inning, glad it worked out, but !!
With work and school I once again missed a great game last night and only could watch from a computer and caught the last bit on the radio on the way home. But my teacher was cool and I kept the class informed. But Im going tonight, me and my friends have 10 seats in a row. Cant wait, I can barely sit at my desk. I have not been to a Philadelphia game this important since AI and the sixers beat the Bucks in game seven back in the day (still my favorite sixers moment and the best game I ever went to). Theres nothing better then a hyped up Philadelphia crowd with a possible champion in sight. I dont think much work will get done today. Probably just leave something up on the screen to look busy.
OOPS. That’ll teach you, Ian, for listening to me. Utley’s “slow bat” eloquently thrashed my premise, temporarily at least. And Burrell piled on with a whack from his wheelhouse on a poorly placed fastball. Take heart - a second date is sometimes more informative than a first.
A key: Don’t key Phillies up; let sleeping dog lie. Errant throw was BIG.
HRs wouldn’t have left Dodger Stadium. Manny’s double would’ve; said, “guess I have to work on my angle.”
Didn’t Howard’s little league coach teach him to get in front of a ground ball? The side-stepping swipe doesn’t cut it.
jjg- as much as I love howard. his fielding drives me crazy. he might be the worst defensive player in baseball. he NEVER gets in front of ball unless they are right at him and he doesn’t have to move.
Whatever happened to the deer-in-the-headlights Ryan Madson who was fine in the 6th, but wilted in pressure situations?
AaronMcKie4MVP – I don’t have NBATV so I couldn’t watch the game myself. Any summary would have been strictly based on the boxscore and the highlights and I don’t like doing that. There certainly will be a post after every regular season game (I have tickets to 20 home games already). As well as lots of none game specific posts intertwined in there. With that said I will start tossing out some Sixers-related posts now that we are 19 days from the season opener.
Great win by the Phils. Hamels showed some poise after early adversity. Good to see that from our ace.
Beside not getting in front of the ball, did anyone else noticed that Howard completely turned his head on that ball like he was scared to get hit square in the face? Then you turn and watch J-roll keep his head down seeing the ball in on that good play he made to start the double-play.
I agree, Pete. It’s not just his job, it’s his adventure. “Sub-par” is the politically-correct euphemism, but “putrid” fits. I give him a smidgen of credit for smiling through it all. Next step: seriously working on that aspect of the game.
Great game from a fan perspective. Although its nerve racking watching the Phils down and trying to claw back into the game. What worries me is again we have 1 big inning, and then nothing else. If that big inning doesn’t happen, we don’t score. We need to be more consistent with our bats and get multiple runs in multiple innings.
In case you didn’t hate the Dodgers and the city of LA already, check out these articles written by the sports writer for the LA times:
http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-simers10-2008oct10,0,7211102.column
http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-simers9-2008oct09,0,4573583.column?page=2
Ryan’s turned into a tiger, knock on wood (or Victorino’s head). He’s really feeling his oats. Out of nowhere comes this rubberband man, possessed and conquering.
J-Roll stop was a great one. Sharp focus, quick hands. He earned compliments on that.
j-dubbz-
it is very disconcerting that we can only score in one inning a game. It’s got us through so far (because of our pitching), but we can keep winning that way.
Agree on the groundball to Howard. You cannot play a ball like that to the side. He’s lucky it didn’t carom off him and continue down the rightfield line. Watching the replay, it didn’t appear to be a “lack of quickness” issue to me either, but I could be wrong. In that situation, you simply must make the extra effort to get in front of that ball and let it hit you in the chest. I think that’s what is really bothering me about the play. Remeber, Howard went on the record a few months back, after he booted a couple balls in a game, and said he challenged anybody to get in front of those balls and stop them. I didn’t like that attitude then and I can’t help but think it played a part in how he played that ball last night.
Beyond the homerun, with which I was thrilled of course, I was ecstatic to see Utley swing at the first pitch. All season, pitchers have been laying fat ones up there on the first pitch because, not only does Utley not swing at it, but he is not even settled in the box. I read a quote from Milt Thompson earlier this week where he said that he wasn’t worried about Utley’s lack of hitting this postseason, he just wanted Utley to get ready in the box sooner. Apparently he listened. Since it worked, I hope we see a lot more of it.
It is now time for me to once again admit that I was wrong and that I would be a terrible big league manager. I really wanted Manuel to sit Burrell on Sunday. Much to his credit, he did not. I’d say it worked out pretty well. After Sunday, I was hoping that the combination of Manuel’s confidence in him and the fact that he delivered in a big way would lead to Burrell paying big dividends for the remainder of the playoffs. I know it’s only one game, but so far, so good. Had Manuel been dumb or impatient like me, who knows what we would get from Burrell the rest of the way.
I think we are going to get a good one today from Myers. He likes to pitch at home and it shows. He will certainly be amped up but, since he already has one postseason start under his belt, I’m expecting to see better control, both mental and pitching, from him. I think another thing that will help Myers is that today is not a “must win” game. Had we lost last night, there would be a tremendous amount of pressure to win today. As it stands, he should be a bit more relaxed and in control.
Time to grab this series by the throat. GO PHILS!
J Dubbz, We were talking about those articles yesterday. A few people from LA chimed in and said that the writer, Simers, is a hack. All he ever does is rip everything and everybody and nobody out there pays any attention to him because they know his schtick.
A very hard game to watch, with our Ace on the hill and our pen all rested we narrowly manage to keep the Dodgers hitters from exploding. I think the Dodgers have a 10 run game in them during this series
Mike: And the Phils do not?
There has been a lot of talk about how great a Dodgers/Sox series would be for Manny/Torre/Lowe/Nomar. Putting my Phillies prejudice aside, as a pure baseball fan, I would want to actually see a Phillies/Rays series. They are both young scrappy teams, one of whom hasn’t been to the series in 15 years and the other has never been there. Not to mention the Rays are the feel good story of 2008. I am sick of seeing the Sox in the series (not to mention every 3rd day of the season on ESPN) and would be glad for a change of pace. Then we have the Manny factor. I believe he is the opposite of what American baseball stands for. He is lazy, selfish, and just the opposite of how I would want to teach the game. That was put on display last night when he stood there admiring his shot into left center, only to realize it was gonna hit the wall and stay in play. I know he got safely to second, but could he have legged out a triple if he hustled out of the box? What if he gets thrown out at second, then is it a big deal? Personally I can’t wait until that disrespectful bum is out of the spotlight. LET’S GO PHILS!!!
bski, A little early for constriction. Like Randy Newman, Dodgers love LA – site of Games 3, 4 & 5. But a win today will certify Phils as winners of the first two games. What to make of Brett Myers on the hill? Only his hairdresser knows for sure.
J Dubz: I am also sick of the Sox, and don’t really care who the Phils play, should they be fortunate enough to advance to the Series, but it sure would be sweet to stick it to Boston personally! (well, not exactly personally, but I think everyone knows what I mean.)
I love attending games at Fenway. Gotta really scrap for tickets these days though. Not as physically comfy as the new ones, but it’s a beauty of a baseball park, and has the bonus of a carnival street atmosphere. Step outside CBP and watch out for that loaded 18-wheeler leaving the warehouse.
J Dubbz…Here, here! I was nauseated by the Torre/Manny lovefest Buck and McCarver subjected us to over the first 5 innings. You could sense they were crestfallen after our two bolts from the blue. Hopefully our game 1 win will get them off the Dodgers bandwagon. I don’t need them only talking about us, just to be fair and give equal time.
You are also right about the Manny thing. Since he tore up the NL and led the Dodgers to the NLCS, all is forgiven? Hello! Anybody remember this exchange that took place over a few days in July:
Manny: I can’t play, I’m injured
Red Sox: What exactly is this unspecified injury?
Manny: Knee injury
Red Sox: You’re scheduled for an MRI on Monday.
Manny: I’m good to go, put me back in the lineup.
He then proceeds to play the Saturday game of the week on Fox. This guy has pulled all sorts of crap for years. He gamed his way out of Boston. There is no way he should be embraced and celebrated for what he is doing, IMO.
I really think MLB has to have some sort of protective clause in place for the ballclubs to prevent players from doing what Manny did. I’m all for protecting the players, but the league just can’t allow the inmates to run the assylum, at least not to that degree. Not only did Manny get away with it, but he also got rewarded.
I’ve been to exactly one game at Fenway (Yankees-Red Sox). It’s a real gem, but I remember the 7th or 8th inning taking forever to play, as Joe Torre used 15 different relief pitchers, changing them every other pitch.
Fenway is certainly a magical place for a baseball fan. I was up there for the Phils/Sox series in the summer of 2004. The WS of that year, the first in their run was truely a great story. But nowadays its just annoying how much hype that team gets. I would call them the new Yankees except the Yankees still get way too much hype themselves.
Fenway is THE best park in baseball, by far. and my 2nd favorite sporting venue after ND Stadium, but I’m clearly bias there.
I’ve been to 2 games at Fenway. Once I went by myself and sat next to these two fantastic old ladies who have had season tickets for years, and talked with them the whole time. The 2nd time I went was the day after Brett Myers beat up his wife and was pitching.
I didn’t go for his act in Boston this year (and said so here) but he does bring some attitudinal sunshine to the festivities wherever he goes. He and Boras conspired for more money and baseball caved in for more money. Greed, the driving force. Both ends are complicit in that drama. It’s the entertainment business and #99 is a spoiled, captivating diva. But If he was a bad dude, Dodgers wouldn’t have followed him as they have. While I don’t condone much of what transpired to effectuate his transfer, I can think of many pro athletes who are less likeable than Man-Ram.
JJG...At the risk of going off on a pyschosocial rant about the “spoiled” superstar athlete, I have to say that it’s all our own fault. It is way too convenient to blame the athletes. Think about it. Who actually does the spoiling? We do! We treat athletes as special from the time their prowess first appears. Well, when you send a very clear message to a kid (by setting them up with easy classes, pressuring teachers to give them good grades that they don’t deserve, let them off the hook for various bad acts in the community, etc…) that his athletic ability makes him special, what do you expect? We create them and then berate them for what they are.
Obviously, none of this applies to lesser talents. If a guy like Eric Bruntlett, or probably even a Jason Werth, tried to pull this stuff, they would be out of the league. The level of talent they possess does not warrant putting up with that kind of baloney. The fact that the amount of crap we are willing to put up with is directly proportional to the amount of talent a player has really ticks me off as well. I mean, crap is crap.
When I talk about Manny, I’m not really blaming him so much for the garbage he pulls or his attitude about it. It’s more that I’m ticked off that we all allow it to continue simply because he is a “special” ballplayer.
Charlie Manuel’s mother just passed away. No word on whether he will manage the game tonight or not.
Oh, he’s still Party Boy.
bski, I’m totally with you on the idea that superior athlete-as-hero manufacturing starts early and mistakenly in our culture (neighborhoods & schools). Unfortunately, the progression of indulging eventually reaches absurd and detrimental proportions as it pertains to values clarification and role modeling for children (and to costs of paying fans of competitions). Sports certainly has strong intrinsic value as a participatory activity and social outlet, but much is sacrificed when we, as a society, allow ’the gifted’ to dictate terms along the way. Don’t know if the genie can be put back in the bottle at this point in our evolution though; it would take a worldwide economic depression to have us stop and reevaluate our priorities. Oh, we’re getting there soon? How convenient.
“Crap” purveyors, beware! Ye shall not be unduly elevated and worshiped simply for your running, jumping, hand-eye coordination, motor skills, dexterity, nimbleness, strength, physiques and strutting anymore. It’s attitude adjustment time!
When ya think about it, pro athletes get paid handsomely for an advanced, sophisticated form of “Recess”.
JJG…I think we should make your italicized warning a part of the mission statement of our grass roots organization that will aim, as it’s sole purpose, to eradicate the warped values that engender the sense of specialness and privilege held by our superstar athletes, to the detriment of our society.
My thoughts and prayers go out to Charlie Manuel and his family.
Manuel does plan to manage the game today. He’s cancelled all pre-game media crap. Not sure if we will hear from him post game. This is so sad
bski - organization acronym: CEFDAB ”Citizens for the elimination of free Desenex foot powder & Atomic Balm ointment”
Great win. Typical Lidge heart attack special, I don’t I can get used to these.
Nice to hear Lidge speak so thoughtfully of Manual’s loss. I like this team, but more importantly, the players seem to genuinely like each other and their leader, Charlie. I hope he’s alright.
*I don’t think I can get used to these.*
We are halfway there. Myers didn’t give us the start I expected, but he made up for it with his bat. Go figure. I was pretty nervous for a couple innings after Manny’s homerun, but by the time we got to Romero I figured we had the game won. It feels good to have that kind of confidence in the bullpen.
I really get a sense that the team is very focused, which is great. They know they have a job to do and they’re going out and doing it. They’ve certainly come a long way from last year.
bski, I’m drawing a complete blank regarding this series. I have no sense at all about what could happen, where the probabilities are. The Phils could win the next two, the Dodgers could win the next 4. But I still stand by a couple things I said earlier:
+ I still firmly believe that Victorino is big-time postseason guy, and will continue to be so.
+ I think Howard will have his big moments soon, and I think they will come during games where no one else is producing.
+ When I said Ruiz had “it”, what I was thinking that he won’t be one of those guys that’ll perform worse because it’s the postseason. I think the way he’s playing now is the same way he’d play if it was a spring training game.
About Rollins, I’m totally rooting for the guy now. I had this idea of going to all the Phillies blogs and pleading that everyone start chanting “MVP” every time he steps up to the plate, but I thought he wouldn’t need that anymore because of how well he played in Game 4 of the NLDS. The more quotes I hear from him, the more I think that his biggest problem this year was overthinking things – I don’t know what exactly he’s thinking about, but something’s on his mind, and that’s usually trouble for a baseball player. My guess would be is that maybe he’s thinking about being more of a prototypical leadoff hitter, but he sucks at it, and we would really be better served if he was up there all the time just trying to hit doubles and triples, and the occasional home run (this similar to what you said much earlier, describing his strengths and weaknesses).
I thought hearing “MVP” chants would help remind him of that, that he wouldn’t have won MVP if he was your prototypical leadoff hitter.
The other thing I’m not drawing a blank on is Hiroki Kuroda, but I’ll save that for tomorrow, I need some time to gather my thoughts. I’ve had some experience with Japanese people and culture, and I’m going to assume that Kuroda’s background will show up in the game somehow and I’m going to try and predict how. Or will it just be a case of “baseball is baseball”? We’ll see…
Has anyone heard or read what the record is for hits by a pitcher in a post-season game? I’m curious where Brett stands on the list.
I was haven’t seen it in any of the papers today.
Jesse – Check out this link. Dontrelle Willis got 3 hits in a playoff game in 2003.
Zack…I’m not drawing a blank. I think it’s all going to come down to the Dodgers pitchers, specifically their starters.
Lowe was something like 6-1 with a 1.something era in his last 10 starts of the season. He also beat the Cubs, giving up 2 runs in 6 innings. He pitched well against us and kept us quiet for 5 innings, but we beat him.
Billingsley had fantastic numbers over something like his final 12 starts of the regular season. He also beat the Cubs, giving up 1 run in 6 2/3 innings. We hammered him.
I think you see where I’m going with this.
Kuroda shut us down twice this year. He beat the Cubs as well, giving up no runs in 6 1/3 innings. Will he give the Dodgers a good start, or will we beat him as well? I think we’ve got a good shot.
I’ll admit, I do not like the match up. Moyer has been fantastic this year, but the man rarely throws 7 innings of shutout ball. You’ve got to figure that Moyer will give up at least 2 runs, hopefully no more than 3, which means that we will need to score runs. I don’t know that we won’t do that.
Look, I said before that we have a tendency to pick the Phils apart and fret over their weaknesses and what they do not do well. I’m pretty sure you must have noticed that, in spite of these weaknesses…they are winning. We just won two games against “tough pitchers” with Rollins and Werth putting up 1-9 efforts and Howard laying an 0-8 goose egg.
The reason I am confident is because the Phils are winning as a team. Victorino is coming up big. Ruiz is hitting. Dobbs is solid. Myers goes 3-3 with 3 rbi and 2 runs scored. (Whodathunkit? Feels like destiny.) In contrast, the Dodgers have been almost all Manny, and they have lost both games.
Back to the pitching. By all appearances, Lowe will be pitching game 4 on 3 days rest. Even if the Dodgers win game 3, I can’t see Torre running Maddux out there (I’m guessing that Kershaw is out of consideration since he pitched in game 2) and risking going down 3-1. Also, by pitching Lowe on Monday, Torre will be set up to pitch him again in game 7 on regular rest.
As I said before, I really think it is going to come down to the Dodgers starting pitching. I say this because I believe that Moyer, Blanton, and Myers will pitch well enough to keep us in each game. It will come down to whether or not we can score enough runs to win. (Hamels can get us a win even if the offense is pretty feeble.) I also say it because we have not done anything against the Dodger bullpen in two games. I don’t expect anything to change there. So, we are going to beat the Dodgers by scoring runs on their starters, getting out to a lead, and then having our bullpen close it out, IMO. The Dodgers need big time performances by their starters to get them back in the series and also to have any chance of winning it. They need to shut us down, get out to a lead, and let their bullpen close it out. I really think that if we hit their starters, we win the series.
Even if Kuroda wins game 3 against Moyer and Lowe wins game 4 against Blanton, we still have Hamels going up against Billingsley in game 5 and Myers going up against Kuroda in game 6. I like those game 5 and game 6 match ups a whole lot better.
Before the series started, I picked the Phils to win in 6 because I had this voice in the back of my brain telling me that Lowe would be pitching games 1, 4, and 7. The idea of Lowe vs Moyer in a game 7, even though it would be at CBP, was unsettling to me, so I let a fair amount of blind fan loyalty creep in and say that we would end it before then. I sure hope I’m right.