Top 9:
Brad Lidge, arguably the 25th best closer on the Phillies in the regular season, has performed almost a full 180 degree turn, performing well in the postseason.
He is facing pinch-hitter Mark Loretta to begin the inning. After a couple of half-hearted swings, Loretta strikes out swinging for out number one.
And then there were two.
Furcal pops out weakly to Ruiz.
One to go.
And then that's it. Even if Belliard had kept the game alive, it's clear in the looks of Dodgers players and coaches; there's nothing left to play for. Still, Belliard did not keep it going. And the last play of the NLCS is Brad Lidge retiring Ronnie Belliard on a flyout to center field.
The Phillies are National League Champions.
Recap:
Phillies 10, Dodgers 4
Phillies win the series, 4-1
W: Chad Durbin
L: Vicente Padilla
This series had comebacks, blowouts and Ryan Howard. Especially Ryan Howard.
And through it all, the games showed what true playoff baseball is all about: heart, dedication and effort. And realistically speaking, the better team won. The better pitching won, and the better hitting won.
Cole Hamels wasn't at the top of his game, but Chad Durbin picked up his game when Philly needed it most. Clutch hitting prevailed in all but one game for the Phillies, and Jayson Werth and Shane Victorino put the icing on the cake.
Whether or not the Phillies will come on top against (in all likelihood) the Yankees is up for discussion. The Phillies lineup will certainly be able to knock Yankee pitching around, however the same can be said about New York's finest.
Until the World Series, this is Zack Feldman signing off.
Good night, baseball fans!
***
Bottom 8:
Ronald Belisario enters the game. Unless I'm mistaken, he is the 18th pitcher used by the Dodgers in this game.
A great diving catch by Kemp is out number one.
Major league journeyman Matt Stairs is in to hit for Madson.
Martin catches Stairs' popup in front of the pitcher's mound for out number two.
Rollins lines a single into center field, keeping the Phillies offense going.
Inches shy of a home run, Victorino hits a ground-rule double, due to fan interference. Unfortunately for the Phillies, Rollins would have easily scored had there been no interference, though instead there are two men in scoring position for Utley.
A wild pitch scores Rollins for the 10th run of the evening for Philadelphia.
Utley grounds out, but it's time for Philly pitching (undoubtedly Lidge) to give Philly fans what they have always wanted ... since 2008.
Going into the ninth inning:
Phillies 10, Dodgers 4
***
Top 8:
The Phillies have little to worry about. Park is retiring Dodgers like Nick Swisher retires the Rays; quickly, yet painfully.
A single from Belliard to lead off the inning is a dim sign of hope for the Dodger offense.
Ethier hits a shot to right, with a first and third situation for the Dodgers.
With relievers to spare, here comes Ryan Madson to pitch.
Manny walks to load the bases for Matt Kemp. A grand slam still leaves the Dodgers two runs short, so they will likely be looking to continue adding base runners by any means necessary.
Kemp singles to bring in a run.
9-4 Phillies
Kemp does exactly what he has to. Swinging for the fences helps, but it won't tie the game. Continued singles yields the most benefit at this point.
James Loney pops out to third on a pitch well outside of the strike zone, giving Madson a big out.
Russell Martin with three on and one out strikes out after a long at bat.
With confidence back on his side, Madson challenges Martin and wins the battle. Four outs to go.
Quickly ahead of Blake, Madson evens the count before getting the 6-4 putout.
The biggest at bat of the year for Madson gives the Phillies the position they need to finish strong in the ninth inning.
Three more defensive outs to go for the Phillies
Phillies 9, Dodgers 4
Bottom 7:
The pace of the game has picked up, and as such, the offense for both teams has slowed down. Even with Victorino's two-run home run, the past two innings have gone by quickly.
Howard, leading off the inning against the newly entered Hong-Chih Kuo, strikes out on an off-speed pitch on the inside corner.
However well Kuo does in this inning, the Dodgers are facing difficult odds, which are getting steeper with each offensive out.
Speaking of difficult odds, the ship is leaving the dock for the Dodgers. Jayson Werth hits his second home run of the game, the seventh home run between the two teams this game.
Werth is now 3-for-4 with 4 RBIs.
A strikeout of Pedro Feliz ends the inning, but not before the Phillies add to their momentum.
Phillies 9, Dodgers 3
***
Top 7:
With Chan Ho Park now in, the Dodgers are in a hole that most teams are not able to climb out of.
Three quick outs later, the Dodgers are down to their six final outs.
Phillies 8, Dodgers 3
***
Bottom 6:
The hardest part of the inning is over for Kershaw, retiring Ruiz.
Now, Miguel Cairo, a man of many winning teams (though little of that is because of him), is retired.
Jimmy Rollins acts shocked and chagrined that he was hit with a pitch in a close game, despite the fact that his previous hit-by-pitch didn't touch anything but his jersey.
Victorino does his team some good, with a two-run home run to left field, increasing the deficit to five.
Phillies 8, Dodgers 3
***
Top 6:
Durbin really pulled the string on the last curveball he threw to Kemp, whose swing missed by a few inches.
Loney and Martin barely fared as well, grounding to Rollins and grounding to Durbin, respectively.
Through 5 1/2 innings,
Phillies 6, Dodgers 3
***
Bottom 5:
The speed of this game is approaching absolute zero, however there is more excitement now than should have been expected a couple of innings ago. It truly is a game again, and the pitching performance of Clayton Kershaw over the next couple of innings will likely dictate the future of the Dodgers this season.
Kershaw begins his appearance with a couple of 95 mph fastballs, a good sign for the Dodgers. Facing Ryan Howard to open an appearance is not an easy thing to do for a relief pitcher.
Although Howard walks, his curveball for ball four appeared to have a bit of the plate. Unfortunately, the catcher Martin had to move his glove a bit to catch the ball, giving the pitch the appearance of being outside.
Werth, 2-for-2 with three RBIs in the game, strikes out on a well-placed fastball in on his hands.
Kershaw almost escaped with a double play, although Belliard bobbled the ball, eliminating the chance for two. He was able to tag second, though, and there are now two out.
Feliz strikes out swinging at a pitch in the dirt. Martin makes a noteworthy throw to retire Feliz, keeping the game within reach for L.A..
Phillies 6, Dodgers 3
***
Top 5:
Clayton Kershaw, the next best option to bringing in Broxton in the fifth inning, is again warming up in the bullpen. With Orlando Hudson pinch-hitting for Sherill, expect Kershaw to take over pitching duties.
Hudson gives the Dodgers their third solo home run of the night -- this one deep to left field.
J.A. Happ, a leading candidate for Rookie of the Year, is up in the bullpen in case Hamels begins to fade. Hamels is currently at 87 pitches through 4 1/3 innings.
Furcal doubles, possibly indicating that Hamels isn't as sharp now as before the long delay.
Hamels threw a solid four innings to start. However a shaky fifth inning is responsible for a shorter gap now. With a man at second and a run already in, Happ is trying to stop the bleeding and prevent a squandering of the Phillies' early lead.
A walk of Belliard brings up Ethier with two on and one out.
Ethier fails to come up big in the clutch, but Mr. Postseason of the 2000s, Manny Ramirez, is up with two out.
Chad Durbin will pitch to Ramirez.
A generous strike one call and a foul off Manny's shin puts Durbin ahead of Ramirez, 0-2, but Manny evens it up at 2-2. To cap off the at-bat, Manny defensively hits a lazy roller to Durbin, who successfully gets out of the inning.
(For the record, make sure you take the pain of bumping into furniture at night, and "times it by a thousand", as per Chip Caray's request.)
After 4 1/2, yes, only four and one-half innings (half the game),
Phillies 6, Dodgers 3
***
Bottom 4:
Werth, hitting a robust .133, including his three-run home run, is now making a case to approach the Mendoza line by game's end. He singles to left to open the fourth for the Phillies.
Ibanez, going head-to-head with Werth and Feliz for lowest NLCS batting average, actually comes up clutch for the Phillies, doubling to right field. The hit plates Werth, who scores from first base.
The floodgates all but open, Torre is trying to keep the defecit within reach. Padilla is gone, chased from the game after only three-plus innings.
Ibanez is still Padilla's responsibility as Ramon Troncoso enters the game. Troncoso has pitched with good success twice in the NLCS thus far.
Ruiz walks, putting a second man on base with only one out.
Hamels bats now, with a bunt expected to put two men into scoring position.
Hamels, unlike many pitchers in today's game, fearlessly crowds the plate. This makes it harder for a pitcher to throw in the strike zone, generally resulting in high and/or outside pitches. It goes without saying that hitting the batter in this situation is a poor idea, especially considering Hamels is up.
On the 3-2 pitch, Hamels gets it down in good fashion. Credit Hamels for getting it down with two strikes, which many hitters would not try to do after missing two attempts.
Give credit where credit is due. Started by Manny Ramirez, there is a trend now involving wearing jerseys far larger than one's true size. This can result in increased hit-by-pitches.
Rollins bravely takes one right in the jersey to load the bases. Reports indicate the jersey is okay.
George Sherrill is the third Dodger pitcher of the inning, brought in to face Victorino. The Dodgers are going to spare no one in this game. Without a tomorrow in which to play if they lose, Torre will go to his best relievers now that Padilla is out.
A generous courtesy strike later, Victorino is hit in the side to bring in a run.
This is do or die for the Dodgers. More runs means a less-likely chance of overcoming the deficit.
Utley, 0-7 in the regular season in bases-loaded situations, strikes out. This effectively keeps the Dodgers in the game.
Hamels is going to come back out to pitch after a long wait, including two runs and two pitching changes.
After four completed innings,
Phillies 6, Dodgers 2
***
Top 4:
Ramirez and Kemp both ground out to short, making it eight straight hitters retired by Hamels.
His changeup has kept hitters guessing, and he retires Loney, L.A.'s hottest hitter.
Chad Billingsley is still up in the bullpen. Expect a pinch hitter if Padilla's spot comes up in the batting order.
Hamels breezes through another inning. Also, don't expect to see Phillies relievers too soon. As long as Hamels can keep throwing, he'll be out there. After this game, there will be plenty of time to rest before his scheduled World Series start.
Phillies 4, Dodgers 2
***
Bottom 3:
Padilla is making his start worthwhile. Though down 4-2, Padilla is now throwing as well as he has since game two.
A couple fastballs have moved left-to-right with such break, they have the appearance of a screwball coming in to left-handed hitters, such as Utley, who strikes out for the second out of the inning.
Ryan Howard goes down without a fight, and still is looking to put up an RBI tonight.
After three innings,
Phillies 4, Dodgers 2
***
Top 3:
Hamels is dealing. Since James Loney's home run, Hamels has put all six Dodgers away, striking out two in this inning.
Phillies 4, Dodgers 2
***
Bottom 2:
Pedro Feliz, in the category of most likely to homer in this NLCS, is ranked slightly below Cliff Lee and slightly above Charlie Manuel. That said, Feliz hits a home run to the same right field seats that have been bombarded the first three times.
Clayton Kershaw, one of the Dodgers' weapons out of the pen, is now warming up. Billingsley has also been warming up.
Hamels strikes out looking on Padilla's best fastball of the night, jamming Hamels up and in.
Padilla's fastball and slider have shown tremendous improvement this inning. Home run aside, this was an interesting inning for Padilla, who has shown for the first time tonight he is ready and capable of bringing a well-located fastball and dropping a devistating slider. Once he establishes his curveball tonight, it is possible he could begin shutting the Phillies down.
After two full innings:
Phillies 4, Dodgers 2.
****
Top 2:
It's no shock how a lead can calm a pitcher down. Already with momentum in the series, the Phillies have taken the shred of run support the Dodgers have already mustered and put three of their own on the board.
Loney, sitting dead-red on the fastball, powers the third home run of the game to the same right field seats.
The fans, already flush with souvenirs, throw the ball back onto the field. The fan's throw clocked 35 mph quicker than Padilla's curveball.
Padilla, in need of gym time, flies out to left to end the inning.
The Dodgers plate one on the road back to tie the Phillies.
Through one-and-a-half innings,
Phillies 3, Dodgers 2.
***
Bottom 1:
Vicente Padilla was greeted with a round of cheers from the Philly crowd, in front of whom Padilla performed as a Phillies pitcher from 2000-2005.
As the Phillies have shown (see: Dodgers Game 4 meltdown), the Phillies are no strangers to adversity. Ryan Howard has stated his case to be 2009's David Ortiz, minus the steroids.
Howard's "I want the bat, now" attitude has led the Phillies to several of their wins this postseason, and Padilla is very aware of Howard's postseason accomplishments.
Padilla's attempts to jam Howard resulted in four consecutive balls, putting two men on with two out.
Originally thought a safer route then pitching to the human RBI generator, Padilla is now watching Jayson Werth circle the bases, following a monster three-run home run to the same part of the ballpark in which Ethier hit his.
Three runs later, Joe Torre is already picturing tomorrow's headlines in the L.A. Times. Credit them for putting up a run before Charlie Manuel goes to the bullpen.
After one complete inning,
Phillies 3, Dodgers 1
***
Top 1:
Ronnie Belliard, James Loney and Russell Martin represent the extent of the Dodgers' offense in this series. Yes, Manny Ramirez provided two of the Dodgers' three hits in Game 3, however he is 2-13 otherwise.
Hamels has yielded two quick outs from the bats of Rafael Furcal and Ronnie Belliard, however a long at bat to Andre Ethier ends with a home run to the deepest part of the ballpark.
Obviously shaken, Manny follows Ethier's effort (say that five times fast) with a single of his own. One on, two out for Kemp.
154 strikeouts on the season not for Matt Kemp. Not a great resume booster, but he has plenty of time to rebound.
After 1/2 an inning,
Dodgers 1, Phillies coming up
***
Dodgers at Phillies Game 5
With their backs against the wall, the Los Angeles Dodgers are going to make their claim tonight to stay in the hunt for the World Championship. After their bats were embarrassed in Game 3, Dodger relief pitching was similarly shamed in Game 4, backing them into the infamous 3-1 hole that, frankly, the Red Sox are the only team to properly master the magic trick that is winning that type of series.
Vicente Padilla is trying to replicate his solid Game 2 start. Cole Hamels opposes for the Phillies, a team trying to prove lightning can strike twice in consecutive years.
For those of you sick of Ron Darling and Buck Martinez (I assume all of you are tired of Chip Caray,) this is Zack Feldman, the Collegian's cross country reporter, bringing you Game 5 of the NLCS. It's do or die for L.A., so here we go!
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