2010 NLCS: Top Performances Through Two Games

Even after just two games in this NLCS, one thing is as clear as ever: The two-time defending NL Champion Philadelphia Phillies have their hands full this time around.  These San Francisco Giants are not “your father’s Giants.”  This team has gotten it done all season long with pitching and timely hitting when necessary, and present a very tough challenge for the Phillies in the NLCS.

The Phillies, hoping to get to a third consecutive World Series, are playing a different type of game this time around and it has worked to fruition.  It’s been their pitching, not offense, that has brought them here. Their H20 rotation of Roy Halladay, Cole Hamels and Roy Oswalt has carried them as their bats were often silenced this season.

The Giants on the other hand have an entirely different lineup than they did in the beginning of the season and caught fire down the stretch to rip the NL West away from the San Diego Padres.  Pitching alone may not be enough for San Francisco, but Cody Ross has made sure that pitching isn’t the only thing the Giants can do as well as the Phillies in this series.  

With two games in the rearview mirror, it’s now a best-of-five with the Giants holding home-field advantage, hosting the next three games in consecutive days.  This may go down to the wire.  Someone will need to swing the pendulum of momentum out West before the series shifts back to Philadelphia, if necessary.

Now, let’s go ahead and bear witness to some of the better performances over the weekend.  

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Philadelphia Phillies: Ranking the Top 10 NLCS Moments in Phillies History

The Philadelphia Phillies have been synonymous with the NLCS as of late, more particularly though, the World Series.  Throughout their recent run in their current “dynasty,” they have supplied fans with many unforgettable moments.  Those along with others in their grim past culminate to make up this list.

Currently, the Phillies are a consistent team that is ever-improving, but this was not always the case.  Over the past 127 years, the Phillies are the losingest franchise in all of sports.  Their fans take in this dubious distinction with a strange sense of pride.  I personally recall being at Citizens Bank Park in 2007 to see their 10,000th loss.  In particular, I recall a loud “BOOOOOOOOO” in unison at the end, this was symbolic of just how bad this team was.  Yet, ironically, 2007 was the turning point, and now it’s recalled as the “beginning” of this “dynasty.”

Now, let’s recount those great NLCS moments throughout the Phillies’ history, most of which have come from the history that has been made over the past few seasons.  These moments have given Philly fans chills during “chilly” October nights in the City of Brotherly Love and will most surely give many of us chills all over again.

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Dominant Roy Oswalt, Clutch Jimmy Rollins Help Phillies Even Series With Giants

When Philadelphia Phillies manager Charlie Manuel walked to the mound in the eighth inning, talked with his starting pitcher, and walked back to the dugout, as a San Francisco Giants fan I was hoping this would be his Grady Little moment. Little, once the manager of the Boston Red Sox, infamously left ace Pedro Martinez on the mound in the 2003 ALCS and watched him implode against the New York Yankees.

But with the way Roy Oswalt was pitching, it was a fool’s hope. He was clicking on all cylinders, and there was little the Giants could do to make Manuel pay.

Oswalt was what Roy Halladay was not in Game 1: stifling. On the other side, Giants left-hander Jonathan Sanchez, who struck out 11 Atlanta Braves in his first postseason start, struggled out of the gate. Sanchez was a very dependable third starter this season for the staff that led the major leagues in ERA, winning 13 games. But if there was one knock on him it was his wildness. He led the majors with 96 walks in 193 innings, a concerning ratio. And the negative managed to rear its ugly head, in the form of three first-inning walks and 35 painful pitches.

He was all over the place, but the home plate umpire was too, calling clear balls strikes and clear strikes balls. One blown call came with the bases loaded. Entering his appearance against Jimmy Rollins, the 27-year old  had struck out two, walked two, and witnessed a throwing error by third baseman Mike Fontenot that brought Aubrey Huff well off the first-base bag. Forty-six thousand were on their feet as Rollins dug in, then they cheered profusely as umpire Dan Iassogna inexplicably called a 3-1 pitch that clearly nipped the inside corner a ball, allowing Chase Utley to walk home for the game’s first run.

Iassogna gave pitchers the outside corner throughout, but he was far from kind when they painted the inner portion. For Sanchez’s pitch to reach the inside corner, as a lefty the ball has to cross the plate somehow. But, Sanchez somehow managed to put that blown call behind him and allow just the single run, striking out Raul Ibañez to end the threat.

When the bases were loaded, the Giants were wary of Sanchez’s rough start, as reliever Guillermo Mota was loosening in the bullpen. But Sanchez forced Mota to sit back down in limiting the damage, and the bullpen didn’t stir for a while as he settled into a groove. A lot of pitches were thrown. Some more walks were issued and hits were allowed, but he persevered, putting up three straight zeros and then was rightfully rewarded for his efforts by an unsurprising bat.

Oswalt had cruised through the first four innings, pitching very effectively and economically to keep his pitch count low entering the fifth. With one out in that inning, Cody Ross stepped to the plate. The same bearded Cody Ross who slugged two inside fastballs in nearly the exact same section of the left-field seats in Game 1. Oswalt missed away with the first pitch, but then made a costly mistake.

A fastball was fired in, approaching the inside corner, right in Ross’ wheelhouse. And he didn’t miss it, crushing the pitch to nearly the same exact spot as Saturday night’s two. It was an amazing scene, and for the third time in as many nights groans from Phillies fans and screams of joy from Giants fans could be heard after liftoff.

Groans turned to cheers and cheers screams of joy turned to groans as Philadelphia quickly fought back, receiving a leadoff double by Shane Victorino just past a diving Fontenot at third and two sacrifice flies by their big hitters to snag a 2-1 lead. San Francisco now had to get another run out of Oswalt to have a chance of heading home with a 2-0 series advantage, but Oswalt made sure Ross’ majestic shot was all his opponent would muster.

His fastball was lively, sitting at a deceptively quick 93 on the gun all night. His sinker was sharp, and his changeup had its late movement. Sanchez managed to pitch into the seventh, which was a tremendous feat given his first-inning woes and early high-pitch count, but Oswalt was the man of the match. Tim Lincecum unquestionably led his Giants in Game 1, and Oswalt did the same for his Phillies, striking out hitters right and left to put together a superb outing.

Despite his excellence, it was only a one-run margin. That was, until the seventh, when the bullpen fell apart. Manager Bruce Bochy, who trusted Sanchez enough to pitch him in the do-or-die 162nd game against the San Diego Padres, sent him back out there to only pull him one batter in. His 100th pitch was slapped up the middle by Oswalt of all hitters, and then Sanchez, receiving a bevy of high-fives, took his seat on the bench and looked on in horror as the bullpen imploded.

After his replacement, Ramon Ramirez, allowed the Phillies third run to score, Rollins delivered the crushing blow against Santiago Casilla, lacing a double into the right-center gap to plate three teammates. The lead was now 6-1, and Philadelphia would go on to win by that margin, as Oswalt pitched the eighth and Ryan Madson handled the ninth to even the series.

The series now heads to San Francisco, with the Phillies bats hot and every Giant except for Ross not. He can’t do it all, and if the Giants are going to reach their first World Series since 2002 they need other bats to wake up so Oswalt’s performance can’t be duplicated.

 

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2010 NLCS Game 2: Phillies’ Bats Come Out of Slumber While Roy Oswalt Delivers

Anyone who thought that this would be an easy series…do you have your answer yet?

A day after the Giants eked out a one-point win on the defending National League champions, the Phightin’s turned around to pull off a 6-1 win to even up the series at one game apiece.

The only thing that was more ironic than the spelling of Cody Ross’ name spelled backwards (Sorry Doc), was another solo shot from Cody Ross on a pitch in the same place to break up another no-hitter tonight.

The man affectionately named “Little Roy” in Philadelphia, attempted to do it all with eight innings of work, only giving up three hits, striking out nine, with a 1.12 ERA, a hit and he scored a run as well.

The second installment of the three aces scored from second, running through the third base coach Sam Perlozzo’s stop sign to score the team’s third run of the night. When asked about what was going through his mind, Oswalt said that he read the ball well off the bat and had made up his mind to score. Halfway there he saw the stop sign, but it was too late to stop—his mind was made up.

Jimmy Rollins, who batted sixth, ended up in the right place, at the right time, clearing the bases in the seventh, on a double giving the Phillies a 6-1 lead that they would never look back on.

The last game Jimmy had a RBI in was on October 1st against the Braves, in which he also had four.

When asked if he saw any advantages to batting in that spot, he was very reluctant to commit his heart to the six-hole, but he did admit that, tonight, he was happy to be in that position.

Tonight, however, demonstrated to the Giants why it’s so hard to stop the Phillies. They will have to find a way to stop the offense of the Philadelphia Phillies for 51 more innings, while, simultaneously, defeating their lights-out pitching.

We saw the same thing last year in the World Series. The Phillies were able to take a lot of hype, compress it into a chip to place on their shoulder and take it into Game 1 to muster out a win. However, the odds were against them to be able to sustain that for another three games in a seven game series.

They sent their ace, who at the time was Cliff Lee, back out there to get them another win. But that’s all a seven game series would allow them…two wins.

The Phillies’ batters look to be heating up, even against Tim Lincecum last Saturday night. In the long run, though, if the Giants are going to beat the Phillies, they’ll have to shut them down—not outplay them.

If you let the Phillies get into a rhythm, it’s very rare you outplay them.

All in all, Game 2 is in the books and the Phillies won 6-1, the series is 1-1 and we’re catching a red-eye flight to San Francisco, for a Cole Hamels versus Matt Cain showdown at AT&T Park on Tuesday, October 19th.

The place to catch it, FOX; the time, 4:19 ET.

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NLCS 2010: Oswalt, Rollins Lead Phillies To 6-1 Win Over Giants, Series Tied

A masterful outing by “Little Roy” Oswalt and a two-hit, four RBI night by shortstop Jimmy Rollins carried the Philadelphia Phillies to a 6-1 victory over the San Francisco Giants, evening their NLCS at one game apiece.

 

To the delight of their hometown fans, the Phillies more resembled the team that was the hottest in baseball over the final two months of the regular season.  While their offense was not electric, they did come alive for eight hits, while drawing five walks and stealing three bases.

 

The key to the game was the dominance of Oswalt, who also more resembled the co-ace that was unbeatable at Citizens Bank Park the last two-plus months, save his sub-par performance in Game Two of the NLDS versus Cincinnati.  Oswalt would yield only three hits, while fanning nine and walking three in eight sharp innings.

 

Oswalt even took a no-hitter and a 1-0 lead to the fifth inning before he left a pitch where the volcano-hot Cody Ross could handle it.  Babe Ross deposited the inside fastball deep into the left-center seats to tie the game at 1-1.  The encouraging sign?  While Ross also drove one deep to center that Shane Victorino hauled in, the Phils did limit Ross to only one homer.

 

The Phillies did not exactly hammer Giants starter Jonathan Sanchez, who struck out seven and yielded five hits in his six innings.  They did take advantage of Sanchez’ early lack of control to manufacture a run in the bottom of the first. 

 

After Victorino struck out looking, Chase Utley—who switched spots in the batting order with Placido Polanco—coaxed a walk, and stole second.  Polanco followed with a soft bouncer to third baseman Mike (don’t call me Brooks) Fontenot whose slightly errant throw eluded first baseman Aubrey Huff.  With runners on first and third, Ryan Howard drew a walk from a full count.

 

Home plate umpire Dan Iassogna seemed to figure in the fortunes of the next two batters.  Jayson Werth was called out looking on a pitch that appeared to be around Werth’s shoulders.  In stepped Jimmy Rollins with two outs and the bases still jammed.  It appeared that Sanchez’ fourth ball to Rollins (“driving in” the game’s first run) got a little of the plate, but perhaps Iassogna owed them one.  The Giants’ lefty did come back to strike out Raul Ibanez, limiting the damage to just one run.

 

The Phillies responded to Ross’ blast with a run of their own to recapture the lead at 2-1 after five.  Victorino led off the bottom of the fifth with a rope down the left field line for a double, and advanced to third on Utley’s fly ball to Ross.  Polanco lofted a fly to medium center to score the man known as The Flyin’ Hawaiian.

 

The two-time defending NL champs gave their pleasantly surprised fans a bigger dose of small ball in the seventh to put the game out of reach.  Oswalt led off with a solid hit up the middle that served to take Sanchez out of the game.  Victorino bunted the pitcher over, and Utley was intentionally walked (curiously?) with the base open.

 

Polanco, liking the three-hole, singled cleanly up the middle. Oswalt, ignoring the stop sign flashed by third base coach Sam Perlozzo, came around to score to put the Phils up by two.  After a double steal by Utley and Polanco, and an intentional walk to Werth to load the bases, the stage was set for Rollins in the type of big spot he usually covets.

 

Although Rollins had registered a hit earlier in the game, it was only because third baseman Fontenot forgot to put his glove under a pop-up that any half-decent Little Leaguer would have camped under.  With a 2-0 count, Rollins attacked a borderline low pitch and drilled it to deep center, one-hopping the wall, and scoring all three runners.  6- 1, Phillies, and with the way Oswalt was dealing, the game was effectively over.

 

In the final analysis, the return to form from Rollins and the little ball displayed by an offense that often seems to wait for the three-run homer have to be good signs for the Phillies, as they still have to figure out ways to score against a great Giants pitching staff. 

 

Factor in the terrific outing by Oswalt—with Cole Hamels set to pitch Game Three— and it’s now a whole new series with the action resuming Tuesday afternoon in San Francisco.

 

 

GOLD NOTES:

 

Placido Polanco’s RBI single in the bottom of the seventh was the Phillies first hit in 11 at-bats with runners in scoring position.

 

 

Babe Ruth, Rusty Staub, Willie Stargell, and…Cody Ross?  With his solo shot in the fifth, Babe Ross became only the fourth player to hit his team’s first three homers in a postseason series. 

 

Polanco may have been out of the baseline on the play in the first inning where Fontenot was charged with a throwing error.  The Giants did not appear to protest the non-call.

 

One of the biggest cheers of the night was for both manager Charlie Manuel and Oswalt in the top of the eighth.  With runners on first and second and two outs, left-handed first baseman Aubrey Huff stepped into the batter’s box.  Manuel came out to the mound to talk to Oswalt, who apparently talked Manuel into staying in the game.  He did, Manuel returned to the dugout to a nice ovation, and Oswalt retired Huff to end the inning.

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Philadelphia Phillies Respond in NLCS Game 2 With an Impressive 6-1 Win

It was easy to start panicking a little bit after the Phillies dropped Game 1 of the NLCS to the Giants on Saturday night. The offense didn’t seem to ever find their way into the ballpark, and the pitching wasn’t an incredible spectacle—an odd sight over the past couple of months in Philly.

But Roy Oswalt wasn’t worried. He got hit around a little bit in Game 2 of the NLDS and was looking for redemption. He also knew the team could not afford to fall to 0-2 to the Giants if they wanted to get to their third straight World Series.

He wasn’t about to allow that to happen.

Oswalt carried a no-hitter into the fifth inning, and wound up allowing only three hits and one run over eight innings. The one hit was, of course, a Cody Ross solo home run.

I’m not exactly sure what this guy knows that no one else does, but he now has three home runs over two games against two of the best pitchers the league has to offer.

Fortunately for the Phils, he wasn’t sharing his inside knowledge with the rest of the team.

But Oswalt’s impressive night didn’t stay on the mound. He also was able to score a run after hitting a single to get on base and then running through Sam Perlozzo’s stop sign at third after a Placido Polanco base hit.

“I didn’t see [the stop sign] until I got halfway down the line,” Oswalt said after the game. “As soon as Polanco hit it, I read it pretty well off the bat and I thought I was scoring straight out. So I had the intention of scoring when I took off, and I wasn’t even looking for a stop sign, so I was halfway down the line and I was hoping I’d get in there from there.”

Two batters later, Jayson Werth came up to the plate with runners at second and third and two outs. We all know how poor Werth has been with runners in scoring position, but the Giants thought it would be a good idea to walk him and force Jimmy Rollins to bat from his left side.

At this point I’m wondering exactly why they think Rollins at the plate with the bases loaded is better than Werth at the plate with two runners in scoring position, but what do I know?

After a three-run double by Rollins, I’m thinking I could be the Giants’ manager.

Ryan Madson would take over for Oswalt in the ninth inning and close the game out, making the 6-1 lead stick and drawing the Phils even with the Giants at 1-1.

Cole Hamels will start Game 3 against Matt Cain, and if he can duplicate Oswalt’s performance from Sunday night, the Phillies should be on their way to a 2-1 advantage and a clear path to the World Series.

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San Francisco Giants vs. Philadelphia Phillies: Game 2 Live Blog

San Francisco Giants Vs. Philadelphia Phillies: Game 2 Live Blog

Good evening, baseball fans, and welcome to Game 2 of the NLCS between the San Francisco Giants and Philadelphia Phillies. I’m Evan Adrian, and I’ll be here from the first pitch to the final out.

Roy Oswalt and Philly will try to even this series against Giants’ lefty Jonathan Sanchez. If Sanchez can give San Francisco a dominant performance, they can head back to San Francisco up 2-0. This is essentially a must-win game for the Phillies.

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NLCS 2010: Philadelphia Phillies Are Still Favorites With H20

It was the matchup everyone was waiting for: Tim Lincecum vs. Roy Halladay. Roy Halladay pitched a no-hitter in this postseason’s first game, while Tim Lincecum threw a two-hit shutout complemented by 14 K’s.

In Game 1 of the NLCS, however, neither pitcher lived up to the expectations of a 1-0 game.

Roy Halladay gave up four earned runs in seven innings of work last night, including two home runs to Cody Ross. Tim Lincecum got the win, matching Halladay’s seven innings and giving up three earned runs. 

Neither pitcher was even close to being the player of the game. Both were in the shadows of Cody Ross, who had Roy Halladay’s number last night, bashing two homers off him. Lincecum gave up home runs to Carlos Ruiz and Jayson Werth. So, while the theme in Game 1 was supposed to be pitching, it turned out to be the long ball.

The Giants put the heavily favored Phillies behind in the series, 1-0, when Brian Wilson came in to get the save, striking out four out of the four batters he faced. 

But the Phillies do not need to worry. Between Oswalt and Hamels, I like the Phillies’ chances of winning the next two games.

Oswalt has a 1.74 ERA since joining the Phils earlier this year, and Hamels has been pitching much better this year than he did in 2009. Hamels looked great throwing a shutout against the Reds to finish off the sweep of the Reds. Additionally, Hamels knows how to pitch in the playoffs. When the Phillies won the World Series in 2008, Hamels was awarded the World Series MVP.

Although this is the first time the Phils have lost Game 1 of a postseason series in three years, they just seem to win every playoff series they are in. In the Phillies last seven postseason series, they have only lost one.

With Oswalt going in Game 2 against Jonathan Sanchez, one has to think that there is going to be a pitching duel. Oswalt has been dominant for the Phils this year, especially at Citizens Bank Park. Sanchez has been great against the Phillies this year with a 1.38 ERA against them. 

With Oswalt’s experience of pitching in the playoffs for the Astros, the Phillies have the edge in pitching experience for Game 2. Sanchez is a postseason rookie pitching in a hostile Citizens Bank Park. 

In Game 3, the pitching matchup will be Cole Hamels vs. Matt Cain in San Francisco. Hamels is one of the best playoff pitchers left in this year’s postseason. Cain is a postseason rookie just as Sanchez, but he is not bad for a first-timer. Cain gave up no earned runs in 6.2 innings against the Braves in Game 2 of the NLDS.

Cain was chosen to start by manager Bruce Bochy in Game 3 instead of Game 2 because of his 5.29 career ERA at Citizens Bank Park. He will start at AT&T Park, where he has had a career 3.16 ERA.

The Phillies have to hold the edge in Game 3 with Hamels, who seems to always be lights-out in the playoffs. I believe Cain will pitch a good game, but the Phillies have too much star power with the bats, and will manage to score enough runs for Hamels.

In Game 4, it’s Joe Blanton going for the Fightin’ Phils and Madison Bumgarner for the Giants. Blanton has been far from good this year and Bumgarner is not only a playoff rookie, he is a first-year Major League pitcher. In terms of pitching, I am going to give the Giants a slight edge, but pitching will not be as much of a factor in this game as in the first three.

If there is any game in this series that will be a slugfest, it will be Game 4.

Whichever team shows up to hit the ball in Game 4 will probably be the winner. If the Giants can get an early lead, I think they will win the game. The way the Phillies can win the game is if Blanton gives up fewer than five runs and the Phillies just hit the ball pretty well against Bumgarner. 

In Game 4, I believe the Giants have the best chance at winning the game.

If Game 5 is necessary, it will be a 50-50 toss-up, just like Game 1. Don’t expect another 4-3 game, think more along the lines of 2-0 or 2-1. Halladay will toss a great game and Lincecum should match him. With the game at AT&T Park, I like the Giants to win Game 5 with Tim Lincecum pitching a complete game.

If Game 6 is necessary, it will look very similar to Game 2 with Oswalt going against Sanchez. At Citizens Bank Park again, I have to stick with Oswalt in the matchup.

Oswalt has the experience of pitching in big NLCS games in Houston, and he has been brilliant at home for the Phillies this year. The X factor in Game 6 will be the home-field advantage for Oswalt and the Phils. I like Oswalt to outduel Sanchez and win Game 6 for the Phils.

If all of my predictions are correct and this series goes to Game 7, the pitching matchup between Hamels and Cain is the most likely scenario. If that is the case, the Phillies will be heavily favored to win Game 7. Cole Hamels will be dominant, there is almost no question about it. So Matt Cain will have to match Hamels with an absolute gem, and that is no easy task for Cain in Philadelphia.

The Phillies fans will be relentless and make it hard for Cain, along with the rest of the team. Cain has struggled in his career in Philadelphia and I don’t see that changing. Hamels will pitch a good Game 7 and the Phillies will score enough runs off Cain to pull off the win.

The Giants will definitely give the Phillies a run for their money in this series. But between the pitching, hitting and playoff experience of the Phils, they will find a way to win this series.

They always do. 

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NLCS Game 1: Tim Lincecum, Giants Top Roy Halladay, Phillies

For those fans who were expecting a pitching duel of the century, Cody Ross and home plate umpire Gerry Davis’ minuscule strike zone made sure to perish the thought. In his first two at-bats, Ross hit blasts into the left field bleachers—the first being the first hit Roy Halladay had allowed in almost 12 innings, and the second giving Giants’ starter Tim Lincecum a 2-1 lead.

Then in the sixth, Davis struck, calling what would have been strike three a ball. A few pitches later, Pat “The Bat” Burrell doubled to left to give the Giants a 3-1 lead with two outs. Juan Uribe singled to give the Giants an extra cushion, making the score 4-1. That would be all Lincecum would need.

After giving up a two-run home run to free-agent-to-be Jayson Werth, Lincecum settled down and made it through seven strong innings. He struck out eight en route to his second win of his postseason career.

Prior to the game, much had been made of such a star-studded pitching matchup. Lincecum and Halladay’s combined stats this postseason (both having only made one career postseason start) were: 2 CGs, 22K’s, 2 hits, 2 walks. One of those complete games was a perfect game.

Through the first few innings, it looked as if the game had the potential to be another matchup where one mistake would decide the victor. But Davis’ unforgiving strike zone consistently made marginal pitches go the way of the hitter. Viewers expecting another two performances like the division series were victimized by Davis’ game calling.

Tonight at 8:00pm EST, the Giants send out Jonathan Sanchez, who since September has been the best pitcher in the league. Facing him will be Roy Oswalt, the National League leader in WHIP (walks plus hits per inning). Like Game 1, this game has the potential to be a low-scoring pitching duel.

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NLCS 2010: There’s No Need To Panic About The Phightin’ Phils

We panicked every year that they wouldn’t win the division, but they did. We panicked during their July slump, but they overcame this by having a hot August and September.

Who were they?

The Philadelphia Phillies.

The panics have already started again in Philadelphia after a 4-3 loss to the San Fransisco Giants in Game 1 of the NLCS.

For some reason, this loss has made fans start to doubt the Phillies, and even forget about Roy Halladay‘s no-hitter.

Let me be the first to tell you not to panic.

If you watched closely to Halladay’s outing last night, it really wasn’t that bad. Although he gave up four runs, he pitched well.

He kept his velocity throughout, and racked up seven strikeouts.

Those two solo shots were just two out of his 105 pitches that he left hanging, something Halladay never does.

Don’t expect Roy to stop the engine in the playoffs.

In Games 2 and 3 we have Roy Oswalt and Cole Hamels.

Two experienced playoff starters, and Hamels is a NLCS and World Series MVP.

On to the Phillies offense, there’s no need to panic there either. Does anyone realize we scored three runs and hit two homers off of Tim Lincecum?

Chase Utley and Jayson Werth combine for 22 postseason home runs.

Carlos Ruiz has been our most clutch and consistent hitter. His double off of Lincecum last night proved it.

Ryan Howard and Shane Victorino have good postseason pasts.

The only player to panic about is Jimmy Rollins, and I think he will come around.

This 2010 Phillies team is probably the best team the franchise has ever had.

Our pitching staff is loaded, and we are the most experienced postseason team along side with the New York Yankees.

The Phillies have won and lost a World Series, so they know what it’s like to be on both ends of the stick.

Why are we doubting experience?

We’ve seen what this team can do when they are down in the count. They have overcome many obstacles in years past, so why can’t they overcome this one?

I’m not sure if it’s Philadelphia fans in general, but the panicking needs to come to an end.

Don’t ever doubt the Phightin’ Phils.

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