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On Biggest Stage, Utley And Howard Must Rise

So far in the postseason, we’ve seen Shane Victorino, Cole Hamels, Pat Burrell, Matt Stairs, Brad Lidge, Ryan Madson and a host of others come up huge.

But there’s been some quiet with the two big boys.

Sure, Chase Utley hit better in the National League Championship Series, but that’s not nearly enough.

The World Series is the stage on which the best players do the biggest damage. It’s where legends can be born. And so far in the postseason, Utley and Ryan Howard have yet to do considerable damage:

Utley – .250 / 1 HR / 5 RBI / 5 R
Howard – .258 / 0 HR / 3 RBI / 5 R

It’s about time for the two big bats to unleash their power. Utley and Howard have to lead the charge offensively if the Phils want to win the World Series. Lefty on the mound or not, they have to find a way. And I like their chances in this series. Despite Scott Kazmir in game one and — potentially — game five, the Rays have a bunch of pitchers these guys can hit.

I wrote when the Phillies won the NL East, that Utley and Howard proving clutch is “the stuff of October epic.” Well, here we are, at the October epic. Time to write those chapters, boys.

Tim Malcolm

Tim first found the Phillies as a little infant at Veteran’s Stadium, cheering on a Juan Samuel game-winning home run in his very first game. With the pinstripes in his blood, he witnessed Terry Mulholland’s 1990 no-hitter, “Steve Carlton Night” at the Vet, game three of the 1993 World Series, countless games during the charmed 2008 championship season and various road excursions. Since November 2007 Tim’s been writing about them daily at Phillies Nation, becoming one of the world’s most popular Phillies scribes. You can catch him on Twitter and Facebook, as well. When he’s not talking about the Phils he’s relaxing with a St. Bernardus ABT 12 or one of his many favored brews.