Can Manny Take L.A. To The Show?
By Andy Spear
Love of Sports Correspondent
If you’re a betting man, I guess you take the Phillies to win the NLCS and move on to the Series.
At least that’s how the odds makers have it. But those same guys made the Dodgers an underdog against the Cubs, too.
The N.L. West champion Dodgers took advantage of every break the Cubs handed them. The East champion Phillies used some tremendous starting pitching, timely hitting and a suddenly human CC Sabathia to get past the Brewers.
Manny Ramirez was the offensive catalyst for the Dodgers. Besides hitting .500 in the series, with a pair of home runs and three RBI, he was on base the whole series, scoring five of his team’s 20 runs. And the Dodgers will be pinning even more of their hopes on his bat against the Phillies. In last year’s ALCS, he hit .409 with a pair of home runs and 10 RBI for the Red Sox. He’s a lifetime .319 hitter in LCS play, with 10 homers and 23 RBI in 39 career games.
But the Dodgers have other bright spots. Leadoff man Rafael Furcal showed no ill-effects of a back injury and set the table, batting .333 with four runs scored, while Russell Martin hit .308.
The problem for the Dodgers is who hits after Manny. Cleanup man and RBI leader James Loney had just three hits against the Cubs, but one was a grand slam in Game 1. Andre Ethier did worse, managing just one hit in 10 at-bats, with no RBI.
Unfortunately for the Phillies, their offense even more looked bleak. The big bats of Ryan Howard and Chase Utley have gone silent for the second consecutive postseason. Against the Brewers, Howard was 2-for-11, and Utley was just 2-for-15. Left fielder Pat Burrell had been hitless in nine at-bats before his three-hit, two-homer effort in the finale.
Shane Victorino and Jimmy Rollins paced the offense, hitting .357 and .375, respectively. And Jayson Werth had a team-high 13 total bases and led the Phils with three runs scored.
The Phillies are a team that relies on its power, which is never a good thing to do in the postseason when you’re facing better pitching. Just ask the Brewers, Cubs and White Sox. The Dodgers pitching staff had the lowest ERA, gave up the least runs and home runs and had the second lowest batting average.
Until Utley and Howard show me they can perform in the postseason, and the Phillies pitching staff can figure out a way to get Ramirez out, or just pitch around him, I’m staying with the underdog Dodgers in this one.
Think Blue!
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