Phillies Look To Clinch Round 1 Of The NLDS Against The Rockies

NFL News - October 12th, 2009 - Written by Scott

The Philadelphia Phillies will look to clinch round one of the NLDS playoffs against the Colorado Rockies tonight. The Phillies are up 2-1 in the series and beat the Rockies 6-5 last night on a sacrifice fly from Ryan Howard. Weather has been a factor in this series as Game 3 had to be postponed Saturday due to snow in Colorado. Tonight's temperature is expected to only be around 50 degrees for the game. Philadelphia is looking to become the first team since the New York Yankees (1998-2000) to win back to back World Series titles. They have also won four out of six against the Rockies and have never lost a series after leading 2-1. The Rockies are currently riding a 3 game losing streak in the playoffs at home dating back to their playoff appearance in 2007.

The Phillies will send Cliff Lee to the mound to start in Game 4 against the Colorado Rockies. Lee pitched well in Game 1 against Colorado in this series, his first ever playoff appearance. He pitched a complete game and only surrendered one run on six hits in the Phillies win. He also added five strike outs and no walks. Lee has won the past two times he has faced the Rockies and has only surrendered 2 runs in 16 innings. They have gotten great work from their starters and only have logged 10 innings during the series by their relievers. Offensively, Philadelphia has done very well this series with runners in scoring position. They are hitting 11 for 28 in this situation for a .393 average. Their bats are beginning to come alive and if Game 1 is any indication, they should continue tonight as they were very successful against Ulbaldo Jimenez. They are averaging 5.1 runs per game in their three games with the Rockies.

Colorado will go with Jimenez again in Game 4 tonight. Jimenez got roughed up in the opening game against Philadelphia. He was pulled in the sixth inning after giving up 5 runs in the loss. He pitched well up until the fifth, holding the Phillies scoreless through four innings. Jimenez fell to 0-2 all time against Philadelphia with an ERA of 8.40. The Rockies seemed to have the edge in regards to their relievers when the series began. However, they are coming into tonight's game with a 5.32 ERA. The Rockies will need to find a way to produce some hits and runs against Lee tonight. They will have a hard time sending the series to a Game 5 if they only get 1 run as they did in game 1.

Bodog sportsbook has the odds for the Phillies at +1 1/2 (-215) and -1 1/2 (+175).

To discuss this and other NFL related stories be sure to check out our new forum at:
https://www.usaplayers.com/forums