The Phillies hit up Amtrak today to come home after splitting the first two games of the World Series in New York.
Yes, last night’s loss was disappointing, but to come out of Yankee Stadium with a split is a hell of an accomplishment. The Phillies have taken home field advantage away from the Yanks, even though Yankee Stadium was pretty much lifeless for the two games there.
While the Phillies pounded out 6 runs in Game 1, this series so far has been all about the pitching. Cliff Lee and C.C. Sabathis both had incredible outings in the first game, which was followed up by a brilliant performance from A.J. Burnett, which overshadowed a good game thrown by Pedro Martinez.
Seeing the two most high-powered offenses in baseball being neutralized in the World Series is amazing. I know it’s not good for the casual fan who likes to see scores of 8-7, but screw them. Pitching duels are exciting too. Pitching is what wins games in the playoffs, and that stayed true through the first two games.
The pitching has totally shut down the two cleanup hitters, Ryan Howard and Alex Rodriguez. A-Rod has gone 0-4 in each of his first two World Series games with six strikeouts in those 8 at-bats. After starting off this postseason going 14-32 with 5 HRs, he’s gone back to his old October self the past few games. Howard hasn’t exactly been Mr. Powerhouse himself either. He went 0-4 with 4 strikeouts in Game 2, but that was after he went 2-5 with an RBI in Game 1. Seeing these two sluggers shut down by the opposing pitchers is a sight to see.
The pitching matchups in the next few games would seem to favor the Phillies. Cole Hamels, if you don’t remember, was last year’s World Series MVP, and he goes Saturday in Game 3 against Andy Pettite at the Bank. If Hamels can regain his form from last year, he’ll be fine. He looked a bit better in the Game 5 clincher against the Dodgers, but no where near his Superman-like run through the playoffs last year.
Game 4 is going to be interesting. The Yankees are ready to go with C.C. Sabathia again on short rest. The Brewers tried this last year, and it eventually caught up to him. Shane Victorino grand slam anyone? The Phillies still have Joe Blanton and J.A. Happ fresh in the bullpen, so either one of them could go on Sunday. Cliff Lee would also be an option on short rest, but I think Cholly will go with Blanton in Game 4, keep Happ in the bullpen, and bring back Lee for Game 5.
As New York found out, this series isn’t going to be easy. Now it’s time to show the Yankees how real fans act during a World Series.
Welcome to the Bank boys. The Series ends here.
Loading ...