Fan commentary on the Philadelphia Eagles and other Philly sports happenings. "Our capacity for hurt is matched only by our capacity for loyalty." -- Bill Lyon.
mirror image of game 1. Martinez pitched well but gave up 2 solo homers....like CC.
Burnett was more dominant...like Lee.
Bright spot was roughing up Rivera and getting runners on in both innings. of course, not going to beat him if the umps continue to give him that huge strike zone.
Man, exciting to see stairs up there capable of tying the game.
oh my gosh, so many thoughts running through my head last night and this morning.
Utley's 1st inning walk was HUGE!.
Seemed like the Phils were in command the entire game even though game was very tight, 1-0 then 2-0, for most of it. I think Buck got it right last night, "Sabathia pitching really good game but just completely overshadowed by Lee's even better game."
can't believe more isn't being made of the really crappy weather that they endured most of the night. Ef Bud Selig. Lee and Sabathia deserved better for their matchup.
Rollins' defensive genius on the humpback liner that wound up doubling off Matsui and Cano. Another huge Yankees running blunder (though it was a very confusing play) on par with their 3rd base screw up against the Angels (which the umps blew). In fact, if the Angels play didn't happen, would the crew have spent the time figuring out the proper call last night? For instance, during the play it is still unclear to me if the 2nd base ump called the "out" because Rollins caught the ball or because he stepped on second for what was thought to be the forceout of Matsui.
That was a gigantic play - they go from one on and no out to none on and two out. At worst, they should have had a baserunner and only 1 out.
Lee is one cool cat. That catch of the pop up on the pitchers mound was goofy, funny, and crazy.
Honestly, if i'm a Yankee fan i can't be thrilled with sending Burnett out tonight. He's a good pitcher but i don't get a sense he's either dominant or a big game pitcher. Losing game 1 at home, I think they would have preferred to start Pettite in game 2, but he's not available cause of the game 6 rainout.
Hallelujah.
My brother says:
What I liked was not letting bullpen give them hope. Not in this game (6-0 it was over), but if they get 1 or 2 against madson then they'll gain confidence against our Pen. Also pedro goes 6 - we will need pen tonight. Lastly, no reason to let them see madson or anyone before they have to and keep rested in case u need 2innings from someone.
A friend writes:
Something just hit me: we won game 1 in Yankee Stadium!
Christ, I've been so over analytical, I've not had the chance to be happy about what we just did.
F-$# that's great.
The point made by my buddy Brody - independent observer, a Nats fan - was this: letting Lee finish was the complete demolition to get insidetheir heads for the next time they faced him.
Personally, I kinda thought 8 innings, 10 ks and 0 runs had already done that. I'd have been tempted to take him out to preserve pitches in case he has to pitch at some point in Game 7.
Yes, I'm that forward thinking, that I thought about a Game 7 when/if Cole is breaking down in the 3rd or 4th inning.
Just another reason to hate the Yankees.
From the Times:
"While the teams each have six major league free agents (that does not include players signed to minor league contracts after being in another organization), the Yankees have spent almost 10 times as much on that group as the Phillies have on theirs.
The Phillies have committed $58 million to their free agents; the Yankees have guaranteed more than half a billion dollars — $533 million — to their super six."
The most surprising news in the wake of the Phillies' game 1 win? Praise for former and much maligned Phillies GM Ed Wade.
Yanks and Phillies Took Different Paths to Build World Series Teams - NYTimes.com: "The Phillies are lauded for their homegrown talent, with the stars Jimmy Rollins, Ryan Howard, Chase Utley and Cole Hamels forming the foundation of the defending champion after being drafted under the aegis of the former general manager Ed Wade.
“Ed Wade drafted a lot of good players and always said, ‘Wait until the product gets up here,’ ” Rollins said. “Now we’re here and everything he said has come true. We’re the guys he was speaking of, and we were able to live up to expectations.”"
Great column by former Phil Doug Glanville about this world series and growing up with the Phillies in the late ‘70s.
For Two Sluggers, It Is the October of Their Lives - NYTimes.com: "“He’s wanted to be the man,” Rollins said. “He’s wanted to step up and assume that role. He’s done that very successfully, and that is very big for him, a big step in his legacy — because he does have a legacy, by the way — to be the man. He’s the big guy on campus. Everybody looks at the big guy and expects things to happen, and he makes ’em happen.”"
Ryan Howard is "The Man."
Remember when he was in Triple A and the knock on him was that he had a "hole" in his swing. Now? Not so much. Hopefully this series will be more of Howard's national coming out party (the Subway commercials notwithstanding) and he can start being included in the conversations about the best hitter in baseball that till now have exclusively focused on Albert Pujols.
Game 1 of World Series features pitching matchup for the ages - washingtonpost.com: "For everyone else -- including Major League Baseball officials and Fox-TV executives -- this is a matchup for the ages: two of the game's best pitchers, both in the prime of their careers, fronting the undisputed best team in each league, and facing the deepest, most powerful lineup the opposite league has to offer.
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Chiefly because of Lee and Sabathia, the 2009 World Series holds the possibility of being an epic confrontation remembered for generations. Each has been virtually unbeatable: In three starts apiece this postseason, Lee is 2-0 with a 0.74 ERA, while Sabathia is 3-0 with a 1.19 ERA. Both have struck out 20 batters while walking only three. But neither has yet faced a lineup like the ones they will be facing Wednesday night."
Shades of 1950 - Phillies Arrive in New York by Train - NYTimes.com
Phillies train it to New York for World Series.
A friend writes:
Not to get overly greedy here, but a win tonight would be soooooo key. It would set up the rotation fairly nicely, with Hamels going in Game 1, Pedro in Game 2, Lee in 3, Blanton in Game 4.
Yes, I'm making an executive decision here, in which I think we'll want Blanton in the rotation against right-handed heavy lineup of the Dodgers. Put Happ in the pen.
Should any 9 inning playoff baseball game finish at 2:30 am EDT?
I know MLB doesn’t want to go head to head with the NFL, but surely they would get better ratings for a strategically scheduled afternoon game than one that went till 2:30 in the morning.
An impressive opening series win.
Lee looked great. A far cry from the last Rockies-Phillies NLDS opener.
What did they see that encouraged them to run at will?
Btw, listened to the last inning on the radio. Chris Berman is a horrible play by play man.
Great Jayson Stark column on today's game.
I know he's a national reporter now, but reading his stuff I get a sense he's still got a special feeling for the Phillies.
A friend writes on the Cliff Lee game 1 news:
Not to mention, in the 1 game that each of them has started against Colorado, Lee pitched 7 innings, gave up 1 run and got 9 Ks; Hamels got shelled, giving up 7 runs in 3 2/2 innings. What's Colorado's record against left-handed starters?
To which the answer is: The Rockies are 27-26 overall against left-handed starters, including just 8-16 on the road.
Here’s a link to a remarkably detailed and insightful analysis of the series by, of all sources, WJLA-TV in Washington, DC. (which is where I got the stat above.)
Game 1 starter.
Good call from Manuel. I was afraid he was going to go with Hamels on short rest.
Lee gets an extra day and Hamels can either be the stopper if we lose game 1 or the hammer to maybe put the Phils up 2-0 in the series if they take game 1.
