Chickens on the Run: NLCS Game 2: Dodgers at Phillies

Phillies took game one. The season series between these two teams was split 4-4. This information just makes this series all the more interesting. Starting tomorrow, I will start posting an evaluation of the Free Agent pitching that will be available this off-season.

Scouting Report:

Dodgers: Chad Billingsley showed the baseball world why the Dodgers drafted him in the first round when he tamed the Cubs for six scoreless innings and got the win in Game 2 of the National League Division Series. Billingsley finally wavered in the seventh, but with seven strikeouts and one walk in front of a hostile Wrigley Field crowd, he was pretty convincing as the Dodgers' future ace. That experience should serve him well as a prep for this assignment at Citizens Bank Park, where he had control problems in his only start this year, walking five while allowing three runs in six innings of a 5-0 loss on Aug. 25.

Billingsley's season was a nice one. He went 16-10 with a 3.14 ERA, starting 32 games and pitching a complete game shutout. He tossed 200.2 innings and held his opponents to a .248 BA while yeilding only 14 HRs. He did walk 80 and gave up 188 total hits to get a 1.34 WHIP. He also averaged a strikeout an inning (201 Ks).

Phillies to Watch:

Pedro Feliz: 4-12 with a double, a HR, and 2 RBIs.
Pat Burrell: 3-10 with 2 doubles and 2 RBIs
Jimmy Rollins: 3-9 with a double, a triple, and 2 RBIs.

The current Phillie roster is 20-69 (.290 BA) with 5 doubles, a triple, 2 HRs (the other coming from Ryan Howard), and 8 RBIs. The Phillies hit him better than what the rest of his opponents (average wise), so this could be a great plus for them...

Phillies: Heading into the National League Division Series, no one was sure which Brett Myers would take the mound for the Phillies: the one who dominated hitters for a 10-start stretch in July and August -- in which he went 7-2 with a 1.56 ERA -- or the Myers who had been beaten badly in his final two starts of the regular season, giving up 14 earned runs in 8 1/3 innings for a 15.12 ERA. Fortunately for Philadelphia, the dominant Myers was on the hill against Milwaukee in Game 2. He held the Brewers to two runs on two hits in seven innings. The Phils will be hoping for more of the same against the Dodgers Friday night. He is 1-1 against L.A. this season with a 1.93 ERA.

Brett Myers didn't have as good a season for the Phillies as Billingsley did for the Dodgers. He went 10-13 with a 4.55 ERA in 30 starts. He did have 2 complete games and one shutout on his way to pitching 190 innings. Opponents hit him for a .267 BA and slapped 29 HRs. He had a 1.38 WHIP and gave out 197 hits and 65 walks.

In the playoffs, he tossed 7 innings giving up 2 runs on two hits and 3 walks. He fanned four, but he was mainly issuing more groundball outs to the flyout (9 to 7). He has a 2.57 ERA in the postseason.

Dodgers to Watch:

Juan Pierre: 13-40 (.325 BA) with a double and 6 RBIs.
Jeff Kent: 7-19 (.368 BA) with a double, a triple, a HR, and 3 RBIs.
Manny Ramirez: 3-19 (.158 BA) with 2 doubles, a HR, and 8 RBIs.
Matt Kemp: 4-10 with 2 doubles, a HR, and a RBI.

The current roster is 44-171 (.257 BA) with 8 doubles, 2 triples, 3 HRs, and 24 RBIs. Normally, I wouldn't put someone on the watch list if they have a batting average of .158, but I thought the rest of the numbers were interesting. Manny, I guess, can't settle for just a single... he's got to get extra bases or nothing at all.

Forecast: I really like the Dodgers in this one. I really don't think this is going to be a high scoring affair for either team, but the Dodgers have the better numbers. Score: 4-1, Dodgers.