NLCS: Dodgers Seeking Ticket to World Series via Their Arms

Having three fine, new Cubskin rugs to decorate their clubhouse, the Los Angeles Dodgers travel to Philadelphia in search of four Golden Cheesesteaks, which will allow them passage to the World Series.

This is the fourth time the Dodgers have met the Phillies in National League Championship Series battle. The first two times, in 1977 and 1978, Los Angeles prevailed. In 1983 it was the Phillies turn. The one constant, to the detriment of both teams, the advancing team lost to their American League opponent.

As with the first round, pitching will decide the winner of this matchup. Both teams boast strong staffs, with a little in-season addition to make them more solid. The Dodgers led the National League with a 3.68 ERA. The Phillies ranked fourth at 3.89.

Los Angeles also had an advantage in strikeouts, walks, and home runs allowed. L.A. struck out 1,205 batters and walked 480, compared to Philadelphia's 1,081 strikeouts and 533 walks. The Dodgers surrendered 123 homers to the Phillies 160, but Citizens Bank Park is known as a place where the long balls come more frequently than Dodger Stadium.

The top starters of each staff are comparable. For the Dodgers, Derek Lowe is the veteran ace and Chad Billingsley is the up-and-coming star. Phillie has Jamie Moyer as the seasoned top dog, and Cole Hamels is coming on fast looking to dominate.

Both of these matchups should feature strong pitching and close games. The goal for the Dodgers is to try and steal one of the first two in Philly and grab the home-field advantage. If they are able to win the first one, that will put a great deal of pressure on Philadelphia in the second game.

The Phillies list Hamels to start Game One against Lowe, and Bret Meyers is to start Game Two. The Dodgers currently are not decided for the second game, but it seems likely Billingsley will get the assignment. If the Dodgers are able to take the first game, it will be very interesting to see how Meyers is able to handle the strain of such an important Game Two.

Unlike in Chicago, the Philly fans will not turn from cheering their heroes to silently watching them lose. If Los Angeles is able to get ahead early, the Philly locals will let their displeasure be known, in loud and quite uncertain terms. That would be music to Dodger ears.

Game Three in Los Angeles has the Phillies sending Jamie Moyer to the hill. Again, the Dodgers have not committed to whom they will start, but Hiroki Kuroda would be in line.

Moyer had a rough time in losing to the Milwaukee Brewers, going only four innings allowing two runs on four hits and three walks. He threw 90 pitches in those four innings.

On the other hand, Kuroda closed out Chicago, allowing no runs in six-and-one-third innings. He sprinkled six hits and two walks while tossing 101 pitches. Kuroda has also been excellent pitching in Los Angeles this year, his first in the major leagues after 11 seasons as an ace in Japan for the Hiroshima Carp.

The fourth-game starters will most likely have the Phillies going with midseason acquisition Joe Blanton, who came over from Oakland while the Dodgers probably will turn to the Greg Maddux, who arrived from San Diego. Blanton won four games with no losses in 13 starts.

However, when Blanton matched up against Brad Penny at Los Angeles, in a game I was very happy to attend, he could not hold a 6-1 lead after two innings. Nomar Garciaparra cranked a homer in the bottom of the ninth to give the Dodgers a 7-6 victory. Yes, it was quite sweet.

Maddux went 2-4 in only seven games with Los Angeles. His savvy experience should be able to see him through five innings, with help coming from Clayton Kershaw or Chan Ho Park.

Kershaw is the young phenom with a smoking fastball and nasty curve. Once he develops a third pitch, he will be ready to dominate. For this series, he would be more useful coming out of the bullpen, as the Phillies have several clutch lefty hitters.

Park is this year's reclamation project. His career started in Los Angeles with much promise. When he reached free-agency age, the Dark Lord Boras arranged for him to leave for Texas, where things started to go sideways.

Stops in San Diego and with the New York Mets were substandard. Now he seems to have regained both control and zip on his fastball and the numbers reflect his positive return.

The closer for Philadelphia is Brad Lidge. Obtained from Houston, where he suffered some major playoff meltdowns, Lidge has turned it around this season, converting all 41 of his save opportunities. The pessimists would say it is impossible to get to him. The optimists say he is due to get hammered. I'm with the optimists.

The Dodgers' closer situation is fluid. Takashi Saito has been highly effective since arriving in 2006, but an injury to his pitching elbow has created many issues. He has not been sharp since his return and was ineffective in his only appearance against the Cubs. Hopefully, the week of rest from his last appearance will be positive for the elbow.

Set-up man Jonathan Broxton was shaky in trying to fill Saito's shoes. He mixed good efforts with poor ones. However, he was large and in charge while closing out the Cubs in Game Three of the NLDS. His demeanor and control were greatly improved. If he is just hitting his stride now, the Phillies have lots to be concerned about.

My next article will look at each teams batters and give my prediction for the series. Remember the baseball adage, good pitching will stop good hitting. By the numbers, Dodger pitchers are the best in the league. That's bad news for the Phillie batters.