Game Recap

It's been too long, but the Giants have won their first NLDS since 2002, when they beat these very same Braves in five. The series was tight, emotional, ugly and brutal. Of course, the fourth and final game was a great reflection of the series in an almost poetic fashion.

All of the games were decided by one run, three of the four games were won in a comeback fashion. All of the games featured superb pitching, maybe with the exception of Sergio Romo. And all of the games featured questionable defense and officiating.

For the first time in my life, I am ashamed to call myself a Cincinnati Reds fan. I have endured 15 straight years without a playoff appearance, twelve of which have been losing seasons. In 2000, Ken Griffey Jr. was traded to the Reds. He was supposed to be the missing piece to a team that had just missed the playoffs the year before, after going 96-66. Instead, Griffey spent time on the disabled list during every season in Cincinnati.

When Philadelphia Phillies’ LHP Cole Hamels took the mound in the 2009 postseason, he looked like a guy that had lost all confidence in himself. Hamels took the mound last night against the Cincinnati Reds the complete opposite of that guy in 2009.

The Phillies entered into Game 3 of the NLDS with one thing in mind: Win and go home.

And they did just that.

Behind a dominant Cole Hamels and a constructed hitting squad that showed the value of both the long ball and the short ball, the Phillies dominated nearly every aspect of this game.

Let's take a look at how the Phillies fared against not only the best defensive teams in the NL this season, but also against one of the best teams, in one of the most hitter friendly parks in the majors.

As the Yankees faded down the stretch this season, many fans scrambling for any semblance of hope pointed back to 2000.

That was the year New York lost 18 of 21 games to close out September, their 87 wins still enough to win the division thanks to a little late period "Curse of the Bambino" action.

Going into Saturday night's Game Three, the Yankees had to be feeling very confident of their chances to sweep the Twins.

They were up 2-0 on the Twins and they had history on their side since Minnesota had not won a playoff game against the Yankees since 2004.

Now, that’s more like it.

This is the Rays that folks are used to seeing. They won with great pitching and timely hitting this entire season.  After failing to do that for the first two games of the playoffs, they found their formula in staving off elimination Saturday afternoon.

The Rays received a great starting pitching performance by Matt Garza, and they got the hits to tie the game late and then take the lead. Joaquin Benoit and Rafael Soriano did the rest by closing it out.

Conventional wisdom heading into last night's game seemed to suggest that Roy Halladay's historic Game 1 masterpiece might have provided a devastating psychological edge in the Phillies-Reds NLDS series. 

The thinking was that the Reds might be demoralized to the point of believing they had no chance in the series, especially as they were staring at the back two-thirds of "The Big Three." And, conversely, the Phillies would be brimming with the necessary confidence and energy to overwhelm their rivals.

Rick Ankiel was never supposed to be an outfielder.

Troy Glaus was not supposed to be a third baseman.

Brian Wilson was not supposed to be human.

The National League Division Series between the San Francisco Giants and the Atlanta Braves is not supposed to be tied—but it is.

It seemed all but over. The Giants were leading 4-1 with two innings to go.

San Francisco has one of the best bullpens in baseball, but there came the Atlanta Braves, and in the blink of an eye, the game was tied.

It marked the second time that night a team came back from a 4-0 deficit to win the game, as the Braves eventually won 5-4 in 11 innings thanks to a home run by Rick Ankiel.

Now the series moves back to Georgia tied at one.