San Francisco Giants (92-7) vs. Philadelphia Phillies (97-65)
def. ATL 3-1 in NLDS def. CIN 3-0 in NLDS
San Francisco Giants
Offensively, the Giants weren't something to write home about against the Braves in the NLDS. Despite 3 RBI apiece from mid-season acquisitions Cody Ross and Pat Burrell, only Rookie of the Year candidate Buster Posey appeared totally locked in at the plate, going 6-for-16 (.375), the only Giant to hit above .300 for the series. As a small consolation, San Francisco did have the highest NL slugging percentage in round one. a less-than-stellar .295. But then again, no National League team has hit a lick in this year's playoffs, and in a series dominated by pitching, the Giants 11 runs in four games was still enough to knock off Bobby Cox's Atlanta Braves.
Yet, despite the best collective pitching performance by any team in the postseason, the Giants young guns have been overshadowed amidst all the talk about no hitters and whatnot. So here's some recognition: The San Francisco Giants starting pitching is the best in the 2010 playoffs thus far; their miniscule 0.93 ERA and 11.17 strikeouts per inning ratio rank first among all playoff teams through one round of competition.
Still, no one seems to be talking very much about them, at least not in terms of them being a serious contender. Tim Lincecum's 14 strikeouts in his complete game two-hit shutout was about as good a performance as you will see, no-no's aside. At least that got some chatter; Matt Cain and Jonathan Sanchez truly got a raw deal. Cain threw 6.2 scoreless innings in Game 3 on the heels of Sanchez' gem. Sanchez fanned 11 in 7.1 innings in Game 2, and he too allowed just two hits, though he did allow one whole run to score.
Say what you want about "H20," but here's one better- Lincecum, Cain and Sanchez abbreviated is LCS, granted, Madison Bumgarner doesn't fit into any acronyms... Joking aside, yes, give credit where it is due to H20, as it is an incredible 1-2-3 tandem. However, one through four, no team has it better right now than San Francisco. Consider that with an average age of the four starters being a peach fuzzy 24.5 years, the Giants have a legitimate, stone cold quartet of starting pitching capable of unbelievable things in the future, and the future could very well be right now.
Philadelphia Phillies
Three is a significant number when it comes to cliches about luck like, "third time's a charm" or three-leaf clovers. For the Philadelphia Phillies, good things seem to come in threes. Presently, the Phils are relying their three top-notch starting pitchers to get them to their third consecutive World Series. In their case, however, luck may not even be necessary.
Roy Halladay has gotten himself acquainted with life in the playoffs quite nicely, although as good as he is, I think he walks one two many batters... Honestly though, what more can you say about a postseason no hitter? Now, I don't consider myself an expert on things of this nature, but come the 7th inning, there was no question about it, it was going to happen. It wasn't one of those "hush hush," let's not jinx this kind of deals. It was unjinxable. Halladay didn't just silence the Reds' bats, he killed more bats than PETA would allow in the literal sense. It was masterful, the single-handed most mechanically methodical manhandlings of a lineup I have ever seen. When all was said and done, Hallday's no hitter essentially marked the only one-game series in playoff history.
What Roy Oswalt and Cole Hamels did from that point on was merely a formality. Hamels was brilliant, though his sweep-clinching complete game shutout paled in comparison to the aforementioned Halladay. Oswalt in the middle wasn't great, but he didn't really need to be. The series, for all intents and purposes, ended in Game 1.
Analysis
This may be one of the most intriguing series there could be to pick for, and here's why. Offensively, the difference between the Giants and the Phillies is significant; the Phillies are vastly superior to San Francisco at the plate. However, the progression of pitching matchups is so phenomenal that it's mind-boggling: Lincecum vs. Halladay; Sanchez vs. Oswalt; Hamels vs. Cain. When it comes down to it, this has the potential to be one of the lowest scoring Championship Series of all-time.
With such tight matchups through Game 3, two things come to the forefront becoming exponentially more critical, the Game 4 starters and the bullpens. The Giants clearest edge lies in Game 4, as they are expected to throw Madison Bumgarner against Joe Blanton. While that would likely change if one team is up 3-0, I don't anticipate that being the case.
As far as relief pitching goes, in limited work the Philly bullpen was technically better, but the sample size for the two 'pens is quite small. Collectively, the Phillies (4 IP) and Giants (9 IP) bullpens amassed just 13 innings, with Charlie Manuel's relievers nibbling at the scraps of 4 innings thrown to them in Game 2. The Giants bullpen has been elite, particularly during the final month of the season, but the caveat here is not to compare the two bullpens to each other, but to the respective lineups they will face. The Philadelphia relievers won't have to face the likes of Ryan Howard, Chase Utley and Jayson Werth on the limited occasions they will be needed. In that regard, the Phillies have the edge.
Prediction
If there's one team equipped to match up against such a juggernaut offense in a best of seven series, I'd have to say it's the Giants. Lincecum certainly has the tools to at the very least not split two head-to-head decisions with "Mr. Doctober." With the luxury of Madison Bumgarner in Game 4, the Giants won't need anyone a third time around, and can very well roll with their top 3 for as long as they will take them. Although that could be 9 strong, logic still dictates that inevitably the bullpens will be called upon, and when that time comes, the Phillies offense stacks up better against the Giants than the Giants bats against the Phillies.
It seems too easy to go ahead and pick another Yankees-Phillies World Series showdown, seeing how both teams are the favorites. It seems that all the Phillies need to do is score first, and they can turn on the cruise control from that point on. I know it won't be that simple, and the Giants will put up a fight. But as much as I'd like to pick the upset here, my gut won't allow it, and I can't justify calling the upset just for the sake of calling it. When it's too close to call, you go with the better team. In my heart of hearts, I know that when it comes down to it, the Phillies are the better team.
Phillies defeat Giants, 4 games to 3
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