Dust Finally Settles, Phillies Will Play Reds
By: Mike Reisman
Going into today, there were multiple scenarios of how the NL Playoffs would be. Now, as the MLB regular season is almost officially complete, we can finally say, the Philadelphia Phillies will play the Cincinnati Reds in the NLDS. Finally, the Phillies can start preparing for the Reds, instead of playing meaningless games against division opponents. Going into today's game, the Phillies had clinched the best MLB record for the first time in franchise history, so this game was ultimately a tune-up for the post-season.
The Phillies sent Cole Hamels out to try to get ready for the playoffs, as the Phillies had announced that Oswalt would also be pitching to try to prepare for the post-season. They would be faced with Tim Hudson, who was trying to propel his team into the playoffs for the first time since 2005. The Phillies would try to discourage the Braves early, when in the 3rd inning John Mayberry Jr. hit a pinch-hit home run, scoring Carlos Ruiz and giving the Phillies a 2-0 lead. Roy Oswalt would replace Hamels in the bottom half of the inning, unsuccessfully I might add. Oswalt would allow two hits in the one inning he pitched, one of them being a Jason Heyward triple, which scored Rick Ankiel and cut the Phillies lead in half.
The 4th inning would prove deadly for the Phillies. Of course, to nobody's surprise, Dannys Baez would be the pitcher responsible. The runs would be started when Brooks Conrad would hit a single with runners on first and second, scoring Matt Diaz. After a Rick Ankiel strikeout, the next two batters, Tim Hudson and Omar Infante, would hit a single and triple respectively, Hudson scoring one run and Infante with two, and would put the Braves up 5-2. (wow that was a long sentence). Of course, the Braves would not be content with a three run lead and in the 5th, would get a solo homer from Derek Lee and an RBI single from Brooks Conrad to put them up 7-2. In the 6th, Matt Diaz would add one final run to make the lead 8-2.
Of course, with the Phillies, it is not over until the end of the 9th. The Phillies would start to chip away at the lead in the 7th, when Jayson Werth would hit a two run home run scoring Ryan Howard, and cutting the lead to 8-4. The Phillies would make their last stand in the 8th. After their first two batters would get out, the Phillies would put together a rally. After the Phillies would get runners on the corners, Wilson Valdez would score pinch-runner Brian Bocock on a single. The next batter, Ben Francisco would hit a two RBI double putting the Phillies down 8-7. Unfortunately, the Phillies could not score any more, and would finish losing 8-7.
The Phillies would finish the season 97-65. They start their NLDS series against the Reds on Wednesday at the bank. The Phillies have announced their NLDS rotation as Halladay, Oswalt, and then Hamels. Get ready for an NLDS preview, coming soon.