Posts tagged BrettMyers at FanHouse

Last year, the Red Sox celebrated their championship by re-signing World Series MVP Mike Lowell and bringing back several other role players. Their only major addition from outside the organization was bench bat Sean Casey. Needless to say, that kind of stability in the era of free agency has become increasingly rare, and the Phillies won't be an exception.

Of course, the Phillies aren't exactly the 1997 Marlins either. They have a strong young core intact. Cole Hamels, Chase Utley, Jimmy Rollins, Ryan Howard and Brad Lidge are all under contract or the club's control for the near future. That five-player spine should be enough to make Philadelphia one of the favorites in the National League next season.

But the status of some of the second-tier players who were integral in the championship run is up in the air heading into the winter. Pat Burrell is at the top of that list. The left fielder is a woeful defender and will never hit for average, but his patience and power will be sorely missed if he signs somewhere else.

Jamie Moyer is also a free agent. He could pitch until he's 50. He could walk off into the sunset. Either way, he made 33 starts for the Phillies during the regular season and three more in the postseason. That too will not be easy to replace.

In the Playoff Pulse series, our MLB editor takes on a hot October topic.

Things move fast in the Internet Age. That's the nature of a 24-hour news cycle or maybe just the short attention span of Americans. Either way, before you know it we're going to be talking about CC Sabathia and Mark Teixeira (And Jake Peavy and Manny Ramirez and maybe even Prince Fielder).

So let's take the chance, while we still can, to pay tribute to the 2008 champions. With a cheesesteak in one hand and a Yuengling in the other, here's to you Philadelphia.

- Here's to the Phillies fans, first and foremost. You're not always the easiest folks to understand. You've booed just about everyone including many of your own players. Even among East Coast baseball fans you can seem like a cynical, sour bunch. But your passion and loyalty is undeniable.

In frigid temperatures and pouring rain on Monday night, Citizens Bank Park was packed to the hilt. In more than 100 years of existence, you've been rewarded for your devotion with a title only twice. It hardly seems like enough.

- Here's to Cole Hamels, who at just 24 has established himself as one of the best pitchers in baseball, and just maybe its greatest changeup artist.

Until his magical October run, Hamels wasn't widely recognized by casual fans for his dominance. He wasn't even an All-Star this year. Hope you enjoyed the relative anonymity while it lasted, Cole.

It's a good thing the Rays won the American League pennant, because had the Red Sox won, the Phillies might have had to juggle their starting rotation. Or something like that. From Bob Nightengale of the USA TODAY:

"I did not want to play Boston," says Myers, 28. "If Boston had beat Tampa, I would have gone to (manager) Charlie (Manuel) and told him, 'I don't want to pitch in Boston.'

"I don't ever want to pitch in Boston again."

If you remember, it was in Boston during the 2006 season that Brett Myers was arrested for allegedly beating his wife, Kim, outside a downtown bar. Despite the charges, he actually started the very next day. The Phillies caught a lot of flack for not holding him out, though for what it's worth, the scorn he received from the fans apparently scarred him for life.

In the Playoff Pulse series, our MLB editor takes on a hot October topic.

On the precipice of their first World Series title in 28 years, the Phillies deserve a world of credit for the way they have executed in October. They have played to their strengths all month long, and as it turns out, those strengths are enough to win a title.

They have a dominant ace in Cole Hamels who may very well close the Fall Classic out Monday night. He's 4-0 in October and he gives the opposing pitcher very little room for error. The rest of their rotation has flown under the radar in part because of Hamels' excellence and in part because of a ballpark that inflates ERAs, but it's proven to be very capable, too, behind the southpaw ace.

They have a lights-out bullpen that finishes with Brad Lidge, but also features top-notch flame-thrower Ryan Madson as the bridge to Lidge and a number of useful situational guys like Scott Eyre and Chad Durbin.

And they have a power-laden offense that has much more balance than the Rays -- one that is capable of putting crooked numbers up on the board as it did in Game 4, but also capable of staying in the game even when it struggles with runners in scoring position because of the home run ball.

If Monday is a coronation, it will have been well earned indeed.

Okay, Rays: your move. You lost Game 1 to one of the best pitchers on the planet. Now it's time to take advantage of your phenomenal home record and get things done. If not, you get to try what only three teams have done: lose the first two games at home and come back to win the Series.

For the Phillies, this is the game to make your move as well. If Brett Myers can win on the road, how bulletproof are you going to feel going to Philadelphia? Game 2's are always pivotal ... this one is no different. So why not spend it with us in our live chat?

Personal history and numbers don't always guide on-field performance, but they can give us a quick insight into who carries the advantage -- if ever so slight -- into a particular game. Tale O' Tape breaks down the starting pitchers to find an edge.

Last night's game was a great pitching matchup with some early Chase Utley fireworks and a Brad Lidge save. So basically, it was exactly what we expected here at Tale O' Tape. Low-scoring, with the ace Hamels getting the job done for his team. From here I expect the Rays to take over, but let's see if the numbers bear it out for tonight.

James Shields

Home Splits - In almost 30 more innings of work, Shields was nails at home in the regular season. He went 9-2 with a 2.59 ERA. The 1.04 WHIP pales his 1.31 road WHIP by comparison. He struck out 91 of his 160 batters at home, and both his shutouts came in the Trop as well. Despite the aforementioned huge difference in innings, Shields still gave up six less home runs at home.

In the playoffs, though, he's gone 1-2 with a 3.72 ERA, 1.40 WHIP, and a 13/6 K/BB. Not exactly great, but he's kept his team in every game.

In the Playoff Pulse series, our MLB editor takes on a hot October topic.

For a one-run game in October, Game 1 of the World Series wasn't exactly a thriller. That's not because it lacked tension or it was a poorly-played affair. It's because Game 1 played exactly to form. As they have three times already this October, the Phillies breezed to victory with Cole Hamels, their best pitcher, on the mound.

A dazzling performance from Hamels is exactly what people expected out of the Phillies, even though they are overwhelmingly considered the underdog in the World Series.

The hard work, and presumably the real drama, lies ahead in this Fall Classic, and Game 2 should be the beginning of it all.

A win from Hamels in the opener is what the Phillies needed to turn the World Series into a competitive one. Everything came easy. Hamels dominated for seven innings, showing once again he's the best starting pitcher in October, and Ryan Madson and Brad Lidge proved unhittable again in relief. The next time Philadelphia will have the starting pitching edge is the next time Hamels steps on the mound.

Normally, losing Game 1 at home is a very large blow to a team's chances of winning the series. That's not really the case here; this was a tough loss for the Rays, but the way the series set up it was almost expected. The first game was much more vital for Philadelphia than for Tampa Bay, as a good portion of the Phillies' hopes lie on the shoulders of Cole Hamels, who was again excellent tonight.

This loss does make Game 2 huge for the Rays though. And they have a favorable matchup, with James Shields going at home against Brett Myers. It's not a must win, but it's close, as going back to Philly down 2-0 would put the Rays in a tough spot, even with the pitching advantage in Games 3 and 4.

Scott Kazmir's start was typical for him, as he displayed good stuff but had some control issues and struggled early, giving up a two-run homer to Chase Utley in the first. Kazmir allowed three runs in six innings, and then four relievers combined to shut the Phillies down the rest of the way. Tampa Bay was actually fortunate that this game was so close, as Philadelphia left 11 men on base. Ryan Howard was a big part of that problem; he continued to struggle, with three strikeouts in four ABs.

Aside from Akinori Iwamura, Tampa Bay's offense didn't show much life with the rest of the lineup getting just two hits. B.J. Upton, one of the stars of the first two rounds, struggled mightily, hitting into two double plays and striking out once. The middle of the Rays' order also looked helpless against Brad Lidge's slider in the ninth, which could end up playing a big role in the rest of the series. They're not in terrible shape, but they need a big performance from Shields on Thursday night to tie things up.

With the World Series finally upon us, MLB FanHouse "sat down" for yet another roundtable discussion to discuss a few of the storylines and issues in the series, as well as predict the winner. Hint: Phillies fans won't be happy.

Matt Snyder: So we're finally to the Fall Classic. Almost no one predicted both of these teams to make it to the series, but it's not individually shocking that either one made it. The Phillies were always in the top three of NL teams throughout the season, and hit their stride in September. The only team arguably hotter than them entering the postseason was the Dodgers, of whom the Phillies dispatched quite easily. The Rays have been struggling to be taken seriously in the national media all season, and now have finally taken the spotlight after Game 7 of the ALCS ... which even prompted me to want to remind people there are two teams playing in the World Series. Who would have ever thought the Rays would be hogging baseball headlines when the word "futility" was not involved.

The Phillies and the Rays are headed to the World Series. It couldn't be more exciting if it was the Yankees vs. the Red Sox! After boring divisional series and a snorefest of an ALCS, the Rays are brandishing their Rayhawks and cowbells and are ready to ring-loudly and have hair at the visiting Philadelphia fans. What do the Phillies have?

The catchphrase of a lifetime.

So you do not think of me as a full retard, please read this before continuing (if you can make any sense of it, we need to focus our blog around the King's English). Tonight's Dugout, the last pre-Show Dugout of the season, is after the jump.