2011 NLCS: 15 Greatest Pitching Gems in Phillies Postseason History

It’s been 96 years since the Philadelphia Phillies made their first postseason appearance in franchise history.

In 1915, it was Grover Alexander who led the Phillies on the mound in the World Series.

Now, nearly a century later, the Phils have another ace in Roy Halladay leading any hopes of another World Series appearance.

But Alexander and Halladay are not just two Phillies pitchers who have led the team in the playoffs.

They were also a part of two of the greatest pitching gems in Phillies postseason history.

In 14 trips to the postseason and over 100 total playoff games, the Phils have witnessed their share of great pitching performances.

Here’s a look at their 15-greatest postseason gems.

15. 1915 World Series Game 1- Grover Alexander

Grover Alexander gave up eight hits over nine innings against the Boston Red Sox in game one of the 1915 World Series.

However, he allowed only one of these eventual base runners to cross the plate as the Phillies came back to win the game 3-1.

But what makes the game so significant is the fact that it was the Phillies first ever appearance in the postseason.

After 33-years, the Phillies had won their first pennant and sent Alexander to the mound in game one.

And after giving up eight hits in eight innings, Alexander and the Phils were tied 1-1 with the Red Sox going into the bottom of the eighth.  However, following two RBI, one from Gavvy Cravath and one from Fred Luderus, the Phillies were able to take the lead and game one of the series.

Alexander pitched nine innings and gave up just one run, to Tris Speaker, while opposing Ernie Shore, who had gone 19-8 with a 1.64 ERA for Boston.

Alexander also struck out six batters and walked just two in the game.

Boston would go on to win the next four games, and eventually the World Series.

However, after 33-years, Alexander helped lead the Phillies to not only their first postseason, but also their first postseason win.

14. 2011 NLDS Game 1- Roy Halladay

How did Roy Halladay fair in matching his 2010 NLDS game one no-hitter?  He retired 21 consecutive batters while leading the Phillies to another game one win.

Although Halladay gave up a three-run first inning home run to Lance Berkman, he soon pitched six-consecutive 1-2-3 innings.

Halladay pitched eight innings and gave up three hits and three earned runs while striking out eight batters.

He also benefited from the Phils offense scoring eight runs in the sixth and seventh innings combined.

The game was Halladay’s fourth career playoff start and was the Phillies first playoff game following a record 102-win regular season.

Halladay was also the first pitcher since Don Larsen to set down 21-consecutive batters.

20 of the 21 outs stayed in the infield, as well.

The Phillies would eventually win the game, but lose the series to the St. Louis Cardinals, although Halladay pitched another dominant performance in game five of the series, as he gave up one earned run and six hits while striking out seven batters.

13. 2009 NLCS Game 2- Pedro Martinez

Pedro Martinez won over 200 games in his career.

However, it was his performance in game two of the 2009 NLCS, a game in which Martinez received a no-decision, which is one of the most memorable in Phillies’ postseason history.

Martinez only made nine starts during the second-half of the regular season and went 5-1 with a 3.63 ERA.

But in game two, Martinez pitched seven innings and gave up two hits and no earned runs while striking out three batters.

It was Martinez’s 18^th season in the major leagues, and 17 days had passed since his last start.

Martinez proved that, despite throwing with less velocity than in his prime, his accuracy allowed him to give the Phils 87 memorable pitches as they tried to advance to their second-consecutive World Series.

The Phillies would eventually lose the game after the Los Angeles Dodgers scored two runs in the eighth inning.

However, following another memorable performance by Cliff Lee, the Phillies were able to win their second-consecutive NLCS.

12. 1950 World Series Game 1- Jim Konstanty

After Robin Roberts, who had gone 20-11 during the regular season, was given time to rest at the start of the 1950 World Series, the Phillies sent Jim Konstanty to the mound in game one.

Konstanty had gone 16-7 with a 2.66 ERA during the regular season.

However, all of these wins came as a relief pitcher.

Konstanty played in 74 games for the Phils during the regular season, but out of the bullpen, not as a starting pitcher.

Not only was it his first start of the season, but he was also opposing the New York Yankees and 21-game winner Vic Raschi, as well as Phil Rizzuto, Yogi Berra, and Joe DiMaggio.

Which makes his four-hit, eight inning start in game one even more memorable.

Konstanty gave up just one earned run in the game before Russ Meyer pitched the ninth inning.

The Phillies would eventually lose the game, and the series to New York, in what was their first postseason appearance since 1915.

However, after 74 games out of the bullpen, Konstanty’s game one start against a team that, at the time, had won two of the previous three World Series is one of the Phils most memorable postseason pitching performances.

11. 1983 NLCS Game 1- Steve Carlton

A first inning home run by Mike Schmidt was the only run that Steve Carlton needed as the Phillies played the Los Angeles Dodgers in game one of the 1983 NLCS.

Carlton gave up seven hits while striking out six batters and giving up no earned runs over 7.2 innings.

Carlton had won his 300^th career game during the regular season.

The Phillies would eventually win the game after Al Holland relieved Carlton and recorded a four-out save.

Holland entered the game in the bottom of the eighth inning with the bases loaded before giving up no hits over the final 1.1 innings.

Carlton would pitch again in game four of the series, and give up six hits and one earned run while striking out seven batters, as the Phillies advanced to their fourth World Series.

10. 1983 World Series Game 1- John Denny

The 1983 World Series began with John Denny giving up a solo home run in the first inning of game one against the Baltimore Orioles.

However, that would be the only run Denny would give up in game one of the series.

The 1983 Cy Young award winner gave up five hits, as well as the one earned run, while striking out five batters before Al Holland came on in relief.

Holland again finished with a four-out save.

The Phillies scored their go-ahead run on a solo home run by Garry Maddox in the eighth inning off of Baltimore’s Scott McGregor.

After giving up the first inning home run, Denny gave up three hits over the next 6.2 innings.

The Phillies would win the game, but eventually lose the series to Baltimore in five games.

9. 2009 NLDS Game 1- Cliff Lee

Cliff Lee was acquired by the Phillies in a mid-season trade to try and help the team repeat as World Series champions.

Nearly two months later, Lee took the mound in game one of the 2009 NLDS as the Phillies played the Colorado Rockies in the first round of the playoffs for the second time in three years.

Lee gave up six hits and one earned run while striking out five batters and pitching a complete game.

Lee also retired 16-consecutive batters from the second to seventh inning, and allowed Colorado’s only run to score with two outs in the ninth.

The Phillies won the game and eventually made up for their early exit in 2007 by Colorado, by winning the series in four games and advancing to their second-consecutive NLCS.

8. 1983 NLCS Game 3- Charles Hudson

Charles Hudson made his debut during the 1983 season against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The Phillies lost the game, although Hudson gave up three hits and two earned runs.

Nearly four months later, Hudson got his win against Los Angeles.

Hudson took the mound in game three of the 1983 NLCS and pitched a complete game while giving up four hits, two earned runs, and striking out nine batters.

The Phils offense added to the win as Pete Rose, Mike Schmidt, and Gary Matthews combined for seven hits and five runs.

Hudson, a rookie, pitched game three in-between the season’s Cy Young award winner in John Denny, and Steve Carlton and his 300-career wins.

After giving up a two-run home run in the fourth-inning, Hudson did not give up another hit for the rest of the game, and set up Carlton to close out the series in game four.

7. 2008 NLDS Game 1- Cole Hamels

Cole Hamels’ pitching performance in game one of the 2008 NLDS had more riding on it than just trying to give the Phillies an early series lead.

The Phils were also trying to forget their 2007 NLDS series in which the Colorado Rockies swept the team in three games.

Hamels’ performance proved that the Phillies had learned from the previous year’s experience.

Hamels gave up two hits and no earned runs while striking out nine batters.

Brad Lidge came on in relief in the ninth inning and continued his saves streak from the regular season, where he went 41-41 in save opportunities, while closing out the game.

Hamels held Ryan Braun, Prince Fielder, and Corey Hart to a combined two hits and five strikeouts.

Hamels also had six 1-2-3 innings out of the eight in which he pitched.

The Phillies would eventually win the game, and the series against the Milwaukee Brewers, on their way to their second World Series title in franchise history.

6. 2008 NLCS Game 5- Cole Hamels

After getting the Phillies off to a solid start in the 2008 playoffs, Cole Hamels pitched the team into the World Series following his performance in game five of the NLCS.

Hamels gave up five hits and one earned run while striking out five batters, before Ryan Madson and Brad Lidge pitched scoreless eighth and ninth innings, respectively, to close out the game.

A solo home run in the sixth inning was the only run scored by the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Hamels, at the time, was the fifth pitcher since 1990 to pitch at least seven innings while giving up one run or less in a deciding game in the NLCS.

The win sent the Phillies to their sixth World Series, in what was their second-consecutive postseason appearance.

Hamels also won the MVP award for the series, his first of two MVP awards during the 2008 postseason.

5. 2009 NLCS Game 3- Cliff Lee

How did Cliff Lee follow Pedro Martinez’s performance when he took the mound in game three of the 2009 NLCS?

By pitching one inning extra, giving up one more hit, and striking out seven more batters.

Lee gave up three hits and no earned runs while striking out ten batters, total.

He also benefited from the Phillies offense scoring 11 runs, including at least one by each starter.

Through six innings, Lee only faced one batter over the minimum.

The Phillies were able to lead the Los Angeles Dodgers 8-0 after the fifth inning, and Shane Victorino, Chase Utley, and Ryan Howard combined for five hits and six RBI.

The Phillies would eventually win the game and take a 2-1 lead in the series before advancing to their second-consecutive World Series.

4. 1993 World Series Game 5- Curt Schilling

The 1993 World Series may have ended a few days earlier if Curt Schilling had not pitched one of the most memorable postseason games in Phillies history.

Not only were the Phillies down 3-1 in the series, but they were also coming off of a 15-14 loss against the Toronto Blue Jays in game four.

But after 147 pitches, Schilling had kept the Phillies in contention and forced a game six.

Schilling gave up five hits and no earned runs while striking out six batters and pitching a complete game.

The Phillies scored a run in both the first and second inning, and Schilling got through an eighth inning in which he gave up back-to-back singles.

The Phillies would win the game, but eventually lose the series to Toronto.

3. 1980 World Series Game 6- Steve Carlton

Nearly a century after playing their first game, the Phillies still had not won a World Series championship.

That changed following Steve Carlton’s performance in game six of the 1980 World Series.

After beating the Houston Astros in a memorable NLCS, the Phillies advanced to play the Kansas City Royals in their third World Series appearance.

The Phillies won the first two games of the series before Kansas City won games three and four to tie the series.

After they came back in the ninth inning to win game five, Carlton took the mound in game six and gave one of the most memorable pitching performances in Phillies’ postseason history.

Carlton, who had won 24 games during the regular season, pitched seven innings and gave up four hits and one earned run while striking out seven batters.

Kansas City scored a run in the eighth inning after Tug McGraw relieved Carlton, who had given up a walk and a single to start the inning.

After pitching with the bases loaded in both the eighth and ninth innings, McGraw picked up his second save of the series, as the Phillies won their first World Series.

2. 2009 World Series Game 1- Cliff Lee

The 2009 World Series gave Cliff Lee the chance to pitch a memorable performance in all three rounds of the 2009 playoffs.

And he did just that.

Lee gave up six hits and no earned runs while striking out ten batters in his first career World Series start.

Chase Utley led the Phillies offense by hitting two solo home runs off of CC Sabathia, and giving the team an early lead.

After his performance, Lee became the first left-handed starting pitcher since 1963 to beat the New York Yankees in game one of a World Series at Yankee Stadium.

Lee also became the first starting pitcher in major league history to strike out ten batters and walk none in the same World Series start in which he gave up no earned runs.

The Phillies would eventually win the game, but lose the series to New York in six games.

1. 2010 NLDS Game 1- Roy Halladay

What an entrance.

As if his first ever postseason start wasn’t going to be memorable enough, Roy Halladay did something in game one of the 2010 NLDS that only one other player in major league history had done: throw a no-hitter in a postseason game.

Halladay, who had been acquired by the Phillies during the offseason, had also thrown a perfect game nearly four months earlier.

Halladay gave up no hits, no earned runs, and struck out eight batters while issuing a single walk against the Cincinnati Reds.

Halladay joined Don Larsen as the only players in major league history to throw a no-hitter in a postseason game.

He also joined a group of four other players to throw two no-hitters in one season.

The Phillies would win the game and the series, but eventually lose the NLCS in six games.

Halladay would win the National League Cy Young award following a season in which the Phillies won their fourth-consecutive National League East title before reaching their third-consecutive NLCS.