Manny Ramirez Passes Torch to Andre Ethier as Los Angeles Dodgers Sweep NLDS

The Los Angeles Dodgers completed a three-game sweep of the St. Louis Cardinals on Saturday afternoon at Busch Stadium.

Unlike its pursuit of clinching an NL West title, which took seven days and the entire final week of the season, Joe Torre’s crew made quick work of the Cards and shut the door on the series.

Undoubtedly, the high point of the NLDS was the outstanding performance from the Dodgers pitching staff.

Pitchers allowed only six runs, highlighted by starters Clayton Kershaw and Vicente Padilla dominating in their starts in Game 2 and Game 3, respectively.

As the pitching staff hit full stride, the Dodgers offense certainly wasn’t pushing at full throttle. The Dodgers stranded 16 men on base in Game 1, and scored only 13 runs over the three games.

But amidst the lost opportunities on offense, there were two standout storylines—and they anchor the middle of the lineup for Los Angeles.

Manny Ramirez and Andre Ethier.

Ramirez was a beast in the 2008 postseason, riding into it high from his unbelievable end to the regular season; he put the Dodgers’ offense on his back as they outscored the Chicago Cubs 20-6 in a three-game NLDS sweep.

While Ramirez was ripping the cover off the ball last October, Ethier went just 6-for-32 with one extra base hit in the Dodgers run to the NLCS.

But as Ramirez faded down the stretch of the 2009 regular season, Ethier shined through as the power source in the Dodger lineup.

Just as Ramirez carried the team against the Cubs last year, the 26-year-old from Phoenix has carried the Dodgers with a dominant performance against the Cardinals.

He batted .500 and collected six hits, five of which went for extra bases, in the three-game sweep. He also drove in three of the Dodgers 13 runs.

What did Ramirez hit in the Dodgers’ sweep of the Cubs last year?

.500 … with, you guessed it, three RBI.

Sound familiar?

And thus the torch has been passed from the aging Ramirez to the emerging Ethier.

Ramirez finally showed signs on life in the series clincher on Saturday afternoon, roping two doubles and three total hits—all of which came on fastballs, to make a huge contribution to the offense

The 37-year-old Ramirez drove in two runs, the first and last of the game, providing Dodger fans with the ray of hope that he might not be done quite yet.

But Ethier still outshined Ramirez, as he went 3-for-5 with a two-run homer and fell just a single short of the cycle.

Ethier’s third inning home run pushed the Dodgers in front by three runs and made life a whole lot easier for Padilla on the mound.

Perhaps Manny can bounce back and have a productive NLCS, but nonetheless it has become glaringly obvious that Manny’s time as a productive outfielder is limited, and Ethier is beginning to finally find his place among the elite sluggers in the league.

Even when he isn’t going right, we must acknowledge the ability of Ramirez to light up the scoreboard on the postseason stage.

The upcoming NLCS will be the 23rd postseason series of Manny’s career, and his eighth championship series overall.

Over those long, cold October and November games, Ramirez has drilled more post-season home runs than any other player in the history of the game, with 28. Additionally, his 76 career RBI rank second, just four behind Bernie Williams for most all-time.

Those numbers alone, despite his recent swoon in offensive production, are the reason that Ramirez continues to be the ever-intimidating presence in the Los Angeles lineup.

Ramirez forces pitchers to go after Ethier with a more aggressive approach than they normally would if he wasn’t on deck.

Regardless of getting more fastballs to drive, Ethier has still done a phenomenal job of taking advantage of good pitches when he gets one.

How many times do you see a player foul a fastball straight back into the screen?

He walks out of the batters box, muttering expletives and wishing that the pitcher is dumb enough to throw that pitch again.

It seems like this never happens to Ethier.

When he gets those pitches, they either find a spot to sit in the outfield grass, or they turn into the newest piece of memorabilia and go home with a happy fan.

The success of Ethier in the NLDS also came juxtaposed to the pre-anointed NL MVP, Albert Pujols, who went 3-for-10 with zero extra base hits and only one RBI.

For those who have seen the evolution of Ethier as a hitter, his performance comes as a surprise to no one.

Looking forward, Dodger fans wouldn’t be misguided to expect huge things from the pride of Phoenix, considering the striking similarities between Ramirez's numbers from the NLDS last season and what Ethier just did to the Cardinals in the NLDS.