Phillies blast Dodgers, head back to World Series again
Posted by: Sam Borden - Posted in Misc on Oct 22, 2009 
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Tonight is the 29th anniversary of the Phillies’ first World Series title, and they celebrated it by winning a second straight National League pennant.
Whether the Yankees finish off the ALCS or the Angels stage a huge comeback, whoever faces the Phillies will have their hands full. The Phillies have Cliff Lee and a bullpen that seems to have stabilized, at least for the moment, as well as a lineup that is more “American League” than most teams that actually play in the AL.
Ryan Howard won the NLCS MVP, and said afterward that he has been impressed by the chemistry the Phillies have had this season.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been on a team that’s been so fun,” Howard said. “To be able to make it to this point again, it’s definitely something special.”
Meanwhile, Joe Torre and his team can’t seem to get past the Phillies. This is the second straight year they’ve been bounced by Philly in five games, and Torre – who has one year left on his contract and has said he’ll return – admitted it’s frustrating.
“They’re confident, they’re talented, and they’re going where we all want to go right now — the World Series,” Torre said.
One last thought: If the Yankees do make it to the series and face the Phillies, both teams better reinforce the upper-deck facings in right field; there could be a TON of home runs as two slugging teams face off in two hitter-friendly ballparks. That’d be some great, great theater.
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Back at it with Game 5 tomorrow. Be sure to check in all day for Flash Points, the game post and all the rest of the news and notes from Angel Stadium. The second batch of playoff Champagne is on ice.
ESPN’s Baseball Tonight (aka Red Sox Nation) is bashing Manny.
Gotta love it how they turn on each other.
They’ll have their hands full with us.
Right now World Series tickets are going for close to $400 a seat for the worst seat in Yankee Stadium. If I planned to buy them hours before the game, how much do you think they’d go for? (As an example, Game 1 tix to the ALCS cost around $200 a week before, then hours before gametime they went as low as $50 each)
And no I’m not jinxing the Yankees by asking this, it ain’t over til it’s over…like we learned from 2004. I’m just merely doing some pre-planning here.
where digya get your ALCS tickets, Chris?
Manny: “I accomplished everything I wanted to accomplish.”
Manny continues to amaze and entertain. The guy just cracks me up, Dodgers fans must be exceedingly frustrated with him.
Stubhub
the tough part is the yanks will likely only host two world series games.
Another Torre failure – SIX in a row.
The Phillies will lose to the Yankees in 5 or 6 games if they play each other. I have no doubt in my mind about it either.
Call it foolish confidence or just plain foolish. The Yankees have a better pitching staff and better lineup however than the Phillies IMO.
Many wanted to see the Dodgers fail and got their wish.
The Phils will be a formidable opponent. I’ m not sure they’re a better team than the Angels though.
Raymagnetic, I love the confidence buddy!! GO YANKEES!!!!
It hardly has anything to do with Torre.
Championships are primarily about the players. The manager can only do so much.
The Phillies pitching staff, while good, has struggled historically against the Yankees and in the case of Hammels and Pedro have diminished stuff and are not the pitchers they were in the past (in the case of Hammels just last year):
- Cliff Lee: Lee is good but as a team the yanks hit .294 with an .840 OPS against him. Arod, Tex, Jeter, Posada, Swisher and Molina (!) have OPS’s over .900 against him.
- Cole Hammels: Hammels stuff is simply not as sharp as it was last year (88-91 down from 91-94, slider with less depth, and a change thats been floating). He’s struggled with his secondary pitches and while his strikeout rate was actually up this year, his batting average against is up .50 points and his batting avg on balls in play is up nearly 60 (so he has not been unlucky since its nearly the same leap)
- Joe Blanton:Blanton the yankes hit well .280 team avg with an 870 team ops in 100ab’s ((tex and arod are 1.1 and 2.2(!) against him))
-Pedro Martinez: Simply, not the pitcher he was in 04 when we slapped him around. Getting by on guile and wits, but 88mph fastballs in Yankee Stadium will travel a long way. Plus, we’re his daddy still (and I’m sure the crowd will remind him if he faces us in the BX)
all in all- i think it will come down to the Yankees pitching v. the phillies hitters. if we can keep that offense in check, the Yankees should be able to wear out the pitchers behind lee and get into their middle relievers.
I hope we can take it to Lackey and get him out of the game eraly. We only need 6 innings from A.J. with the bullpen rested.
chris,
I thought stubhub stopped selling 2-3 hours before gametime?
I tried to do what you suggested and they said tickets were no longer available once it was within 2 hours before gametime.
maybe i did something wrong…
sorry-early
“Many wanted to see the Dodgers fail and got their wish.”
making it to the second round of the playoffs isn’t exactly failure.
it’s not like they’re spending 200 million is it?
torre has done quite well with the dodgers.
Eric,
I wonder if the Phillies will go with J.A. Happ instead of Blanton to try and neutralize some of the Yankee lefties (most notably Damon and Cano).
I have no I’ll will towards Torre. Kind of wish thy went through. If we would have both made it there would have been tons of sub plots with old faces and comparisons with the late 70′s Yankee Dodgers world series and maybe A Rod over taking the mantle of Mr. October.
Boston Dave – 5 wins to go!
October 22nd, 2009 at 1:07 am
“They’ve got some hitters and pitchers coming…..fast.”
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With all this talk about Montero staying at catcher or not, do you think it makes sense to season him as both a catcher and a corner OF?
in the games Romine catches, Montero can try out of the OF or 1b. he’d also catch 80+ games at AAA.
I think we’ve talked about the value in this type of flexibility before.
I am 100% for Montero being a fulltime catcher. But the reality is, it’s at least possible that he won’t be able to play 140 games at catcher in the majors.
whatever can get his bat to the majors the quickest, while still expecting to be primarily a catcher in the long run, seems the best bet to me.
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I think you could see him play a little first base from time to time and in the smaller outfield like right field in YS, left field in Boston and Baltimore, but, mainly you’ll see catcher and DH. If NYY has Cervelli backing up and if Romine comes on with the bat, he could hit like a right fielder or even left field. He’s got power and very good footspeed, enough to steal 10-15 a year. Strong arm. PAT M thinks he could play a corner infield, too. He saw him growing up, but, saw what I saw, sort of stiff hands and feet aren’t real quick.
I think Bruney should replace Guzman on the WS roster. We will need lots and lots of pitching.
David
October 22nd, 2009 at 1:39 am
I think Bruney should replace Guzman on the WS roster. We will need lots and lots of pitching.
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If the Yanks make it to the WS, Hinske will most likely be added to the roster. He can pinch hit for the pitcher at Citizen Bank Park.
I don’t really trust Bruney, and it just gives Girardi another toy in the bullpen to experiment with.
@ Boston Dave–
Not sure if they start Happ. He’s thrown a total of 3.2 innings since Oct 8, and showed some signs of wearing down in Septmeber when had an ERA of 4.43. He also has not been very effective in short relief.
His playoff stats are brutal
3.2ip, 6h, 3r, 5bb, 4k
Also, his home road splits are pronounced, 4.4 era @ home, 1.99 away, would u dare start him in the stadium with shaky control? I don’t think i would.
Hinske will replace Guzman, We need a pinch-hitter for the NL games.
Also Coke and Marte will both be needed as the Phillies have multiple lefties I don’t think we will be seeing Bruney
Goodnight all…Can’t wait for Game 5 tonight
no we need Hinske to replace Guzman because we won’t have the DH in philly so we’ll eventually need to pinch hit.
Hinske is a must…When Giradi pinch runs for Matsui it leaves a gapping hole in the 5 or the 6 hole with Gardner’s stick…….Once again the Yanks dominating bullpen will be the major difference when The Phils try to match up with them……And who was or is this Imback person…Frankly I think it’s someone in disguise…..GB, I haven’t see Austin play since he left El Toro HS….Judging from your reports and updates one has to think the Yanks are either showcasing him as a catcher or it’s time for him to start playing in the OF as you suggest….He swings a great stick
Pat M.
Do you think the Yankees will clinch tonight ?
I hope so. I hate when the Yankees play the Angels especially in Anaheim.
Jeremy, I’ll be at the game…And man do I hope they clinch in Anaheim and stick to all the bandwagon Angel fans once and for all……I do think the crowb will be at 50-50 Yankee fans as the Halo faithfull will sell their seats……Exercising the demons will have taken place 24 hours from now….
Yeah. Taking it at Angels Stadium would be a big lift in terms of ending the poor performance there over the years. I just don’t want to hear about 2004 and collapses, and I am tired of the Rally Monkey. I hope A.J has a big game in him with his best stuff.
Jeremy, I’m with you …..I was listening briefly to an Angel radio sports talk show earlier today…..Some of the Halo worshippers were complain that the Fox announcers ( Buck & McCarver ) were very bias in the Yanks favor…..I almost went off of Pacific Coast Highway when I heard that….The chump didn’t even know who the Fox talking heads names were, never mind how anti Yankee they are…..By the way, the station was promoting an Angel Ralley for tomorrow afternoon…..What a joke !!!
Pat M.
LOL ! An Angel Rally ! I never heard of a baseball team having a rally before the game. What is this football ?
I guess they do some strange things down there in the OC. But Angels fans need to stop with the crying. The Yankees are a better team and they need to deal with that and put down the tin foil.
Pat: What do you expect. It’s talk radio and, just like the Francesca callers back east, those people don’t really know anything about the sport.
The other Phil…On occasion I’ll listen to the WFAN by way of my computer……At least in NYC you get a person who knows what their talking about….Maybe 1 in 5 from what I’ve heard …..That’s not the case here, although College Football and College Hoops brings out the more in tune callers…….Angel callers are schmucks…….
Should we fear the Phillies? They’re the NL version of us.
Johnny D,
Maybe the Phillies should fear us. We’re the AL version of them (and slightly better). Better bull pen, better SP’s, better line up…
Here’s the deal- the Yankees are the best team in baseball. They have been all year and they still are. The Phillies and every other team are at least a notch below the Yanks this year. So the Phillies have a good lineup. So what? The Angels were supposed to have a good lineup also, they had that great OBP, had all those .300 hitters. What happened to them? They got shut down by CC Sabathia, the best pitcher in baseball. And so far, AJ Burnett and Andy Pettitte, two great pitchers in their own right- they have been shut down also. Bottom line, no matter what the lineup, the Yankees have the pitching to counter it.
As for the Yankees hitting vs. the Phillies pitching, this is where the real advantage lies. After Cliff Lee, whom Sabathia can match pitch for pitch and leave it up to the bullpens, the Phillies have no one that the Yankees would even think twice about. Hamels, Blanton, Happ…. decent pitchers, but the Yankees lineup is another class. And when it comes to the bullpens, the edge overwhelmingly belongs to the Yanks. It’s not even close.
Bottom line, the Yankees have the best players in baseball and they playing like the best team out there. They are head and shoulders above everyone else and they will come out on top this year.
Here’s the deal- the Yankees are the best team in baseball. They have been all year and they still are. The Phillies and every other team are at least a notch below the Yanks this year. So the Phillies have a good lineup. So what? The Angels were supposed to have a good lineup also, they had that great OBP, had all those .300 hitters. What happened to them? They got shut down by CC Sabathia, the best pitcher in baseball. And so far, AJ Burnett and Andy Pettitte, two great pitchers in their own right- they have been shut down also. Bottom line, no matter what the lineup, the Yankees have the pitching to counter it.
As for the Yankees hitting vs. the Phillies pitching, this is where the real advantage lies. After Cliff Lee, whom Sabathia can match pitch for pitch and leave it up to the bullpens, the Phillies have no one that the Yankees would even think twice about. Hamels, Blanton, Happ…. decent pitchers, but the Yankees lineup is another class. And when it comes to the bullpens, the edge overwhelmingly belongs to the Yanks. It’s not even close.
Bottom line, the Yankees have the best players in baseball and they playing like the best team out there. They are head and shoulders above everyone else and they will come out on top this year.
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Phils look tough and will be a challenge for either AL team, but the ALCS is not over yet. Lets finish off the Angels then we can worry about the Phillies….
A-ROD=….The bullpen , as you pointed out is a huge advantage going forward in the World Series…..And that will come into play and will be the deciding factor in the Yanks winning their 27th Championship……Minimize the Flying Hawaian , work around Howard, Yanks in 6
Currently Yanks have no power hitter on bench (Gardner,Molina,Cervilli,Guzman). Dropping Guzman for Hinske is a must.
I would start Gardner over Swisher. So far Swisher can’t hit, can’t walk, gets K’ed more in playoff. His defense will not be missed either.
Dodgers made the Phillies look good,because they didn’t pitch well or hit.Philly did both,hence the outcome!
manny. milton bradley…
another lesson that character has a lot to do with free agent signings. i think the yankees have learnt their lessons and tread carefully in this respect.
last winter the yankees not only lucked out on the talent side in their signings but also in character.
Well, Yankees fans will not be able to give Joe Torre the ovation all were anticipating, that’s a shame.
I won’t be there to help, but I hope they boo Pedro just as loud and long as they would have cheered Torre.
That would be fun. (Remember the Zim!!!)
Uh….the above is assuming they can finish off the Angels, of course.
Bronx Bombers Girl-your dinner sounded great! Did your mom like it?
Sun Devil
October 22nd, 2009 at 1:12 am
Another Torre failure – SIX in a row.
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I guess you think the fans in Atlanta don’t appreciate Bobby Cox, too?
Based on the vitriol thrown at Joe Torre on this blog by certain posters you would think his book made specific negative comments about the LoHud blog- ‘Torre read through the LoHud blog daily and wondered why so many of them, who knew virtually nothing about baseball, felt compelled to offer advice and criticism on every pitch of every game.’
Torre is an excellent manager and a class act, it’s too bad many of you are both classless and not smart enough to understand that. All this crap about him ‘burning out his bullpen’ is exactly that, crap. Maybe, in his later years, they just didn’t have many good relief pitchers. On what planet are Tanyon Sturze and Scott Proctor considered at the level of a Phil Hughes? Did he ever burn out Mo? Let me know when you figure that out.
wow, the dodgers put a fight. Thats ok. The phillies mean business and its time for the yankees to close the door tonight. BRING ME THE HEAD OF THE MONKEY!!! ***darth vader voice***
Here is a simple quiz for you LoHud experts.
What was Mike Stanton’s ERA in 1998?
Was it:
1.64
2.38
3.41
None of the above
50-The Average Baseball IQ on the Lohud Blog
October 22nd, 2009 at 7:54 am
Based on the vitriol thrown at Joe Torre on this blog by certain posters you would think his book made specific negative comments about the LoHud blog- ‘Torre read through the LoHud blog daily and wondered why so many of them, who knew virtually nothing about baseball, felt compelled to offer advice and criticism on every pitch of every game.’
Torre is an excellent manager and a class act, it’s too bad many of you are both classless and not smart enough to understand that. All this crap about him ‘burning out his bullpen’ is exactly that, crap. Maybe, in his later years, they just didn’t have many good relief pitchers. On what planet are Tanyon Sturze and Scott Proctor considered at the level of a Phil Hughes? Did he ever burn out Mo? Let me know when you figure that out.
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Perhaps if you left, we could raise the board IQ by 70 points.
so what if Mike Staton’s ERA was above 5 in 1998 – his WHIP was 1.22 which is fine but he gave up a lot of HR’s and that will kill you ERA
what’s your point? i know some people in the media thinks the 1998 bull penn was superior ot the current one which is a dubious claim. The one area where 1998 is clearly better than 2009 is starting pitching
If the Yankees advance to the WS, I dont think there is any chance that Bruney replaces Marte in the BP … if Girardi wasnt going to add Bruney to ALCS roster against an Angel team that only has Abreu as their only true left handed bat, then I doubt that he will add him in the WS where the Phillies have several left handed bats … including Utley and Howard back-to-back.
I think it is a given that Marte would be kept as a second lefty bullpen option to match up with.
What’s unbelievable is how much Fat kruk bashes the Yankees. This guy takes every opportunity to point out the weaknesses of our team and sing the praises of anyone else…whether it’s the Dodgers, Phillies, or Angels. I’d like to see Kruk run the mile, then maybe he can talk all he wants
While I believe that Yankees can beat the Phillies in the World Series, I also believe that Phillies can beat the Yankees. Obviously, the edge has to go to the Yankees, but I think a lot of you are underestimating this Phillies team.
The key for the Phillies will be to take one of the first two games in New York. The Phillies had the best road record in the NL this year (possibly in MLB as well – not sure), and heading to Philadelphia 1-1 will be huge for the fightins.
The fans of Citizen’s Bank Park really play as a 10th man, and the Phillies have rode that energy to a 11-1 record at home the last two post seasons.
Despite what some of you may think, the Phillies and the Yankees are evenly matched.