UnbeLEEvable; Phils Offense, Lee Overpower Dodgers
In a world that sometimes lends itself to feast or famine, the Phillies certainly dug into a smorgasbord Sunday night as they crushed the Dodgers, 11-0, to take a two games to one series lead.
After scoring just one run on Friday in a loss to the Dodgers, the Phillies bats exploded scoring four first-inning runs courtesy of a two-run triple from “the Big Piece” Ryan Howard and a two-run bomb to center from Jayson Werth.
The onslaught continued throughout the game as the Phillies managed to put up the crooked number three more times, including two runs in the second, two in the fifth, and three in the eighth.
If you’re looking for a offensive standout, take your pick as every player in the starting line-up scored at least one run. Raul Ibanez was the only Phillies starter to not record a hit in the ball game.
Both Jayson Werth and Shane Victorino homered, Carlos Ruiz and Jimmy Rollins each had doubles. Ruiz’s torrent streak has been one of the keys to the Phillies success so far this postseason. “Chooch” is now batting a ridiculous .625 in this series and has seven R.B.I.’s throughout the playoffs.
Also of note on the offensive side of the ball, Howard set a Major League record in the first inning with an R.B.I. in his seventh consecutive postseason game, when all games came in the same season. The overall record is held by Lou Gehrig, who had ribbies in eight consecutive games, spanning three years.
Lost in the offensive beat-down was a masterful, eight inning performance from Cliff Lee. Lee was untouchable allowing just three hits, two to Manny Ramirez, all while sitting down ten on strikeouts. Despite coming to the plate in the eighth inning(an at-bat in which he roped a single), his 114 pitches tossed were just a bit too much to allow Lee to finish the complete game shut-out.
The hostile Philly crowd set the tone early with “Beat L.A.!” chants heard from the on-set. The Dodgers starter Hiroki Kuroda looked startled and the cold northeastern air seemed to stiffen his hurt neck. The Phillies wasted no time jumping on Kuroda and chased him in the second inning.
Both teams resume play Monday night, another 8:07 start. The Phillies will look to extend their series lead.
