What a great comeback by the Philadelphia Phillies on Monday night! Trailing 5-3 heading into the eighth inning, things did not look good for the Phillies. However, Shane Victorino stepped up bigtime and hit a two-run home run to tie the game at 5-5. It was then pitch hitter Matt Stairs turn to go yard as he delivered the game winning moonshot off of Jonathan Broxton and the Phillies beat the Dodgers 7-5.

Besides the four runs in the eighth inning, the Phillies jumped on the scoreboard in the first inning with two runs. Chase Utley had a rbi double while Jason Werth scored on a rbi ground out by Ryan Howard. Howard would end up scoring the Phillies third run in the fifth inning on a wild pitch as well.

Starting pitcher Joe Blanton tossed five innings as he gave up three runs on seven hits. He did strike out four batters but also walked four batters. It would have nice to see him pitch a little deeper into the game but luckily for the Phillies their bullpen pitched well enough to get the victory.

Chad Durbin was the only relief pitcher to give up any runs as he allowed two in the sixth inning and was quickly pulled. Ryan Madson threw 1 2/3 innings to get the victory in the game. Brad Lidge threw 1 1/3 innings to get the save. Scott Eyre also got into the game as he recorded one out.

Now the Phillies are up 3-1 in the series and will be looking to close things out in L.A. on Wednesday. They will be sending Cole Hamels to the mound and he will be facing off against Chad Billingsley of the Dodgers. I like the Phillies chances of closing out the series with Hamels on the mound that is for sure!

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Hey everyone, I’m filling in for Spotter as he is 12 hours ahead of us over in China for the week. Hopefully he is able to catch the games over there. He sure didn’t miss much in game three however as the Phillies were blown out 7-2.

Jamie Moyer only lasted one and a third innings as the Dodgers scored five runs in the first inning to jump out to a 5-0 lead. Old man Moyer simply didn’t have his pitches working for him and he was hit hard. He was taken out of the game in the second inning after he gave up his sixth run of the game on a Rafael Furcal solo home run.

The only offense for the Phillies was two rbi singles. Pedro Feliz scored Ryan Howard in the second inning on a single to shallow left field and then in the seventh inning, Pat Burrell singled in Chase Utley.

The Phils will now send Joe Blanton to the mound in game four of the series. If the Phillies can pull out a win, I like their chances of winning the series and moving onto the World Series. The Dodgers will be countering back with their ace as Derek Lowe will get the start.

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Brett Myers led the charge in game two for the Phillies but once again he did it in a extraordinary way, with his bat!  Myers had three hits in the game and cleared a bases loaded spot with a double down the right field line in one at bat.  Shane Victorino also had a big day for the Phillies.  Brad Lidge and his bullpen mates Chad Durbin, Ryan Madson and J.C. Romero pitched scoreless relief behind Myers to earn holds and a save.   Off to tinseltown hopefully to close this series out!

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Condolences to skipper Charlie Manuel who found out before the game that his mother had passed away, Manuel managed the game despite the heavy heart.  Shane Victorino also found out some bad news after the game as he was told his grandfather had passed away back in Hawaii.   Am in Shanghai for the week so apologize for the brevity, only able to rehash what I read for the rest of the series.

Game three is Sunday, the “older ace” Jamie Moyer takes the hill for the Fightins trying to earn win # three of the best of seven series.

Cole Hamels pitched like an ace in game one of the NLCS going seven strong innings and holding the Dodgers to only two runs. With the exception of Andre Ethier and Manny Ramirez the Dodgers could have been blanked. Chase Utley came thru with a two run home run in the sixth off Dodger starter Derrick Lowe and Pat Burrell blasted a solo home run in the same inning to end Lowe’s day and put the Fightins ahead.

Ryan Madson and Brad Lidge closed the game out without incident and the Phillies earned a big win. Philly fans were loud and strong in this one and indeed had an impact.

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Charlie Manuel pinch hit for Hamels in the seventh frame with So Taguchi hoping that Taguchi could get a sacrifice bunt down to advance Carlos Ruiz who had reached on a single. Taguchi popped the bunt up and heard the wrath of the Philly fans! Manuel had Gregg Dobbs available but chose to go for the sacrifice. I think Charlie outfoxed himself on that move, it did not cost the game but not so sure Dobbs wasn’t the better move as Greg Maddux was on the hill for the Dodgers. The Phillies have not been a small ball team all year and I see no reason to start now.
Manuel did make a very good mound visit in the top of the eighth when he came out to see Ryan Madson and reinforce to not give Manny nothing to hit in his at bat….. Manny swung at the first pitch, an outside change up that he pulled as a soft line drive to third baseman Pedro Feliz to record the out.

Sitting in LAX right now preparing to board for trip to China, Fightins will begin game two soon with Brett Myers on the hill. Hope that Brett controls the adrenalin and he should do fine.

The NLCS kicks off tommorrow with Cole Hamels taking the hill for the Fightins against the Dodgers Derek Lowe. The NLCS is a seven game series and the format is 2-3-2 in regards to home field advantage. If the series goes seven games the Phillies will have four games in their home ball park. The way the schedule lays out it would appear that Hamels would only be enabled to pitch two games since doing otherwise would require pitching on three days rest and he has never done that before. That being the case the depth of the Phillies staff will come into play.

The two teams split this season in the eight games played but Dodger shortstop and leadoff hitter Rafael Furcal did not play in any of the games. Furcal brings added punch to the Dodger offense as he is the ignitor much in the manner Jimmy Rollins and Shane Victorino are for the Phillies. I doubt that either team will allow either Manny Ramirez or Ryan Howard to beat them, that is, it is highly doubtful either slugger will be given any pitches within the zone therefore both must be very patient and hit the mistakes!

I like the auxiliary bats to the core slugger in the Phillies lineup more than those of the Dodger blue. Rollins, Victorino, Greg Dobbs, and Chase Utley all will swing left handed against a predominantly right handed Dodger staff, L.A. has only two lefties in the bullpen so left on left matchups against Howard and the like will be very limited by Joe Torre. Right handed hitters Pat Burrell and Jayson Werth have had big roles this season and must also come thru. Offense from Pedro Feliz and Carlos Ruiz is a bonus as they provide most impact by defensive play. Geoff Jenkins and Matt Stairs could have big impacts as left handed pinch hitters since the Dodgers are limited from the southpaw side on the mound.

 The Dodgers counter with Casey Blake, Matt Kemp, Jeff Kent, Furcal, Russell Martin and Nomar all swinging right handed and are lighter on lefthanded hitters with first baseman James Loney and Andre Ethier being the lone core starters swinging from the left side. Juan Pierre is available as well.
like the depth of the Phillies starting pitching when compared to the Dodgers. Brett Myers is a key to the series as he needs to pitch late into games for the team to succeed. Joe Blanton will get a start in the series and must pitch like he did in the NLDS. Jamie Moyer and Hamels will need to continue to excel. The bullpen is an advantage to the Phillies, the Dodgers have a good pen but the Phils have a closer who is perfect thus far in Brad Lidge and he shows no account of not continuing that streak.

 Dodger Manager Joe Torre has many rings to his credit and is an advantage to the Dodgers but Phils skipper Charlie Manuel knows his personnel very well and was very good in strategic moves against the Brewers in the NLDS.

 Overall my heart tells me Phillies in Four! My baseball mind tells me a slightly different story with the key to the series not being any player on the field. I truly feel that Phillie fans in the home park can sway ballgames with their perception and reactions to the game. That being said I see this series going at least six games, more likely seven but a win for the Fightins on the home turf and the fans having an impact on the deciding game.

Unfortunately I will not be able to see most of the series as I have a work assignment in China for the week! I will check as much as I can on the internet and be pulling for the Fightins from afar, sure hope my prediction comes true and we advance to the big show, the 2008 World Series!

Big games require players to step up into the limelight and shine.  Joe Blanton did just that as he gave the Phillies six and 1/3 innings of great pitching limiting the Brewers to just a solo home run by Prince Fielder.  Jimmy Rollins shined by leading off the game with a solo home run to give the Phillies the early lead.  Pat Burrell shined by belting a three run home run in the third inning to put the Fightins up by four, he stepped up again in the eighth and belted another home run, this one a solo blast.  Jayson Werth shined as he also belted a solo home run.   The Phillies led the majors in home runs and displayed that skill predominantly in this one! 

On defense the big man Ryan Howard made a spectacular stop on a ground ball to record a 3-1 out in the eighth inning.  Howard did not hit the ball in this one but found another way to contribute.  Brad Lidge pitched the ninth to end the game and make the Fightins a perfect 80 and 0 when leading after eight innings.

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“Beat L.A., Beat L.A.”  will be the chant beginning thursday in the NLCS.  Cole Hamels will get the ball and will have had seven days rest so lets hope our young ace performs as well as he did in the first game of the NLDS.  The Phillies hold home field advantage for the series so Philly fans can and will have an impact on the series, positive approach on and off the field can take us to the Series……….time to shine folks, lets get it done ! 

The Milwaukee Brewers came out with the perfect approach against Phillies pitcher Jamie Moyer as they were very patient and made Moyer throw strikes.  The Brewers plated two runs in the first inning as Prince Fielder hit a sacrifice fly to score Mike Cameron and J.J. Hardy singled to plate Bill Hall.  Both Cameron and Hall had reached on walks.   Those were the only runs scored thru four innings as Brewer starter Dave Bush was getting the Phillies out on “at ‘em” balls.  The Phillies hit the ball hard on many occassions but right at Brewer fielders whom to thier credit made every play.

Moyer was pulled for a pinch hitter in the top of the fifth.  He threw only four innings but amassed 90 pitches as the Brewer hitters worked many 3-2 counts.   Milwaukee scored one more in the bottom of the fifth off reliever Clay Condrey.    The Phillies scored in the sixth as Jayson Werth tripled to lead off the inning and scored on a groundout by Ryan Howard.  The Brewers scored again in the seventh off of Scott Eyre as Jason Kendall plated J.J. Hardy who had led off the inning with his third hit of the game. 

The Brewer bullpen was once again dominant as they did not give up a run in four and 2/3 innings of work.  Solomon Torres closed the game out for Milwaukee to earn the save.

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The Milwaukee fans mostly stood thru the entire game, they showed alot of heart and were very loud in their support of the home team.  The Brewers threw big time leather in this game, specifically Craig Counsel at second and Bill Hall at third.     I think that game four is as much of a must win for the Phillies as it is for the Brewers, if Milwaukee can win they gotta like thier chances with C.C. Sabbathia coming back a second time, the Phillies would counter with Cole Hamels which would be a great matchup but not one I want to sit on the edge of my seat for !  Big game tommorrow with Joe Blanton scheduled to take the ball for the Fightins and Jeff Suppan for Milwaukee.

Brett Myers was the Phillies starting pitcher in game two of the NLDS but his biggest early game contribution was with his bat rather than his arm!   In the Phillies second inning Myers came to bat against Brewer ace C.C. Sabbathia  with two out and a runner on third base and battled tremendously thru a nine pitch at bat to coax a walk!  The Phillies fans cheered loudly throughout the at bat and gave Myers a standing ovation, it all seemed to unnerve Sabbathia as he then proceeded to walk Jimmy Rollins on four pitches to load the bases.  Shane Victorino  then came to the plate and drove a hanging cutter deep into the left field stands for a grand slam home run!  

Milwaukee had scored first in this one as Myers loaded the bases in the first inning on walks and actually walked a run in.  The Phillies tied the game in the second as consecutive doubles by Jayson Werth and Pedro Feliz produced a run.  The FIghtins went ahead on Victorino’s slam.   The Phillies chased C.C. Sabbathia in the bottom of the fourth inning as Jimmy Rollins doubled with two outs and consecutive walks to Shane Victorino and Chase Utley ended the big man’s day.  Brett Myers had another quaity at bat in the inning extending Sabbathia to nine pitches before flying out to center field.   Sabbathia threw 98 pitches thru three and two thirds innings.  The Phillies did not score in the fourth as Ryan Howard was called out on strikes against reliever  Mitch Stetter to end the inning and leave the sacks loaded.

Milwaukee scored a run in the top of the seventh as J.J. Hardy doubled to lead off the inning and eventually scored on a ground out.  Brett Myers pitched a strong game going seven innings and only allowing four hits with two runs scored.  He did himself proud in this one, Mr. Myers likes the big stage and came thru with a fine performance! 

Ryan Madson started the eighth inning and recorded two outs but two Brewers reached base, with Prince Fielder as the hitter the Phillies skipper brought in J.C. Romero.  Romero only needed one pitch to splinter the big man’s bat and record a ground out to end the inning!

Brad Lidge pitched a perfect ninth to earn his second save of the series.  The Phillies remain perfect this season when leading after eight innings.

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Skipper Charlie Manuel looked like a genuis in this one by flip flopping Shane Victorino and Jayson Werth  in the lineup.  Victorino batted second and Werth sixth and both contributed big time, Victorino had three hits while Werth had two.  The second inning control meltdown by Sabbathia put me in mind of a similiar scenario back in the day when Phillie fans “noise” caused Dodger pitcher Burt Hooten to lose command of his pitches and issue consecutive walks that cost him the game.   Phillie fans can make a difference,  I know I would not want to be a visiting player coming into that environment! 

Game three switches to Milwaukee and staff older ace Jamie Moyer takes the ball for the Fightins.  On a personal note I would like to congratulate a local ballplayer Scott Grimes from Kennett Square, PA who was recently inked by the New York Mets to a contract.  Grimes is a young man I know personally and who is a great person.  He led the independent Can-Am league this past season in many offensive categories while playing for Worcester.  Scottie will succeed and I firmly believe he will become a major leaguer………… being a Phillie fan I obviously have no love lost for the Mets but they got a good one in Mr. Grimes and my allegience will be torn when he reaches the show!

Cole Hamels pitched magnficently in his second chance at the playoffs unlike last season when nerves got the best of him.  Hamels pitches eight shutout innings striking out nine brewers.  The Phillies gave Hamels a lead in the third inning as Carlos Ruiz led off with a singleand advanced to second on a sacrfice bunt by Hamels.  Hamels reached first base himself as Milwaukee second baseman Ricky Weeks erred by dropping the throw from third baseman Bill Hall while covering first base.  Chase Utley then smoked a double over the head of Brewer center fielder Mike Cameron to score both Ruiz and Hamels.  Consecutive walks were then issued to Ryan Howard, Pat Burrell and Shane Victorino to score a third run.

Milwaukee starter Yovani Gallardo did not pitch bad and kept the Brewers in the game thru four.  The Milwaukee bullpen did an excellent job after Gallardo as they did not allow the Phillies to score another run. 

Brad Lidge came on to pitch the ninth inning and struck out the side albeit he struggled. Ryan Braun knocked in Ray Durham with a double with one out.  Lidge then struck out Prince Fielder and walked J.J. Hardy, both Braun and Hardy advanced to scoring position on a wild pitch.  Lidge then struck out Corey Hart to close the game.  Lidge ended up striking out the side.  42 saves in 42 tries!  80 and 0 when leading after eight!

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Skipper Charlie Manuel most surely will be second guessed for taking Hamels out after eight as Lidge struggled with the ninth.  Hamels had thrown less than 100 pitches and was dominating the Brewers.  Lidge needed over 30 pitches to get thru the ninth.  Ryan Howard was walked three times and would have been four but he got impatient and swung at a high pitch.  It seems the Brewers have decided that he will not be the man to beat them in this series.  Getting the first win is key as in the previous 26 NL series that were five game sets the team winning the first one has prevailed in the series 23 times.  Brett Myers goes at it tommorrow against C.C. Sabbathia,  I feel a very good outing coming on from Mr. Myers, we just need to get him some runs to work with!  

Phillies kept lefty J.A. Happ on the playoff roster along with both left hand hitting outfielders Geoff Jenkins and Matt Stairs.  Pitcher Rudy Seanez was kept off the roster, the Fightins are going with 11 pitchers and 14 position players at least for this series.   The win was the first post season victory for the Phillies since 1993 when they won game five of the World Series.   Cole Hamels was working on six days rest, if he can pitch like this with that type of rest maybe the team should invest in a six man rotation next season!

With the division won yesterday the final game of the regular season became one that allowed skipper Charlie Manuel to rest his core players and play callups and reserves.  Kyle Kendrick was given the start and he pitched four innings but had similiar struggles as he displayed during the stretch drive.  Kendrick gave up three runs on four hits while walking one.

The Phillies bats though stayed hot as rookie catcher Lou Marson, the Phillies minor league player of the year,  collected his first big league hit in his first at bat in the game and later belted his first major league home run.  It is expected that Marson will make a strong push to make the ballclub next spring.  So Taguchi had a good game out of the leadoff spot as he had three hits.  Eric Bruntlett and Tadahito Iguchi also had two hit game.  The Phillies prevailed by an 8 to 3 count capped off by a pinch home run by Matt Stairs.  Les Walrond got the win in relief.  The Fighins finished the season with a record of 92 wins and 70 losses.

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Kendrick will be sent to Clearwater, Florida to work at the spring training complex.  He will not be on the initial playoff roster but as needs arise may be added later.  Management must decide who they are going to place on the playoff roster as the NLDS will start on Wednesday.  The Milwaukee Brewers will be in town Wednesday to kick off the best of five series, their ace C.C. Sabbathia threw today in the clincher so he will not be available till at the earliest the second game.  Cole Hamels will take the ball for the Phillies, lets hope he does not psyche himself out like he did last year. 

Great time to be a Phillies fan!  Sure hope our team stays fired up and approaches the playoffs to win, team members admit that last year they were pretty happy to just make it, this year there is an urgency to do some damage!