Oswalt in Game 2?
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Oswalt in Game 2?
Bob Brookover, Inquirer Baseball Columnist
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Without saying it, Phillies pitching coach Rich Dubee made it clear Tuesday that Roy Halladay will pitch Game 1 in the postseason against an opponent still to be determined.
Conventional wisdom has been that the Phillies will follow Halladay with Cole Hamels in Game 2 and Roy Oswalt in Game 3 to split up the two righthanders, but there are strong indications now that Oswalt will pitch Game 2 and Hamels Game 3.
"It's going to be Oswalt in Game 2, you can bet on it," a baseball source said Wednesday.
It would make a lot of sense regardless of the opponent, but especially if the Phillies face the Cincinnati Reds.
By pitching in Game 2, Oswalt would be in the comfort zone of Citizens Bank Park, where he is 9-0 with a 2.10 ERA in 10 career starts, including 5-0 with a 1.76 ERA since joining the Phillies this season.
Oswalt, who said after Tuesday's outing against Washington that he did not think he'll pitch in another regular-season game, also has had a dominating career against the Reds, going 23-3 with a 2.81 ERA in 32 starts. The only year he did not have success against Cincinnati was this one. He was 0-2 with a 6.75 ERA against the Reds with both those outings coming while he was still pitching for Houston.
Hamels has also had success against the Reds during his career, going 6-0 with a 1.07 ERA, including 7 2/3 shutout innings earlier this season in a home victory.
Oswalt is 10-2 with a 2.45 ERA in 18 career games against San Diego and 6-8 with a 3.61 ERA against San Francisco. He had a 1.57 ERA in three starts against the Padres and 1-3 with a 3.33 ERA in four starts against the Giants this season.
Hamels is 4-2 with a 2.75 career ERA against the Padres, including 1-1 with a 1.13 ERA this season. The lefthander is 4-2 with a career 4.67 ERA against the Giants, including a 0-1 record and 7.36 ERA this season.
My goodness, I remember having this debate last year, and what a different 12 months has made for the quality of this pitching staff! I love Pedro, but he, 2009 hamels, lee, and the rest of that crew, do not even compare in any way to the 2010 staff. There is no wrong answer here, and Charlie will push the right buttons to ensure the Phils jump on WHOEVER 2-0 next Wednesday/Friday.— CosmoK
Hamels should start game 2 of the NLDS. Hamels does not have a good track record at ATT park, so he should pitch games 2 and 6 in the NLCS. Oswalt can then pitch games 3 and 7.— abspe- Disappointed in Philadelphia local bloggers. The phillies are entering a 3 game series with Atlanta that has enormous playoff implications and our reporters are sleeping in. Thanks for nothing.— jtj06
- jtj06, that series starts tomorrow and means absolutely nothing for us. I guess we can get some articles up here breaking down John Mayberry's career numbers against Beachy or what we can expect from Paul Hoover this weekend?— jaybatt79
- @duke santos hahaha i like the response, and to each his own i suppose. At least we can all agree we have a wealth of good choices
@jman and I believe by quoting actual statistics i was "putting up"— AbsoluteIrish - Hamels worries me. He's still a bit of a mental case. When things are going well everybody is mentaly tough but as seen in his last couple starts he's not above a tantrum. And the game vs the braves he got saved by 3 or 4 double play balls. If any of those get through for hits he woudl have fallen apart. The Roy-boys will get it done and Hamels is the best #3 in all of the playoff teams and will feed off being undervalued vs choking under pressure of being #2— JuanSamuel4prez
- A "baseball source" is all you've got for us? Not even, a baseball source with 20 years experience or a baseball source connected to a National League team? Does Wheels qualify as a baseball source?— andwhysee
- jaybatt79, I guess if who our playoff opposition is nothing and how much they have to stretch their pitching staffs to make it to get in is nothing then you are absolutely right. However on the rest of the earth that is crucial and there are dozens of story lines that could develop as the weekend unfolds. Should the Phillies pick their opponents? If they can, who do they want? The Phillies play an enormous role in not just who will be wild card, but also in how difficult of a road the wildcard will have to get in the playoffs. The positioning of the 3 remaining contenders can change wildly from day to day over the weekend and the Phillies are in the thick of it because they are playing the Braves. I kind of thought that was more important than giving the bloggers a vacation this close to the end of the season.— jtj06
- If they play a California team, you pitch Hamels in California, SF, SD it doesn't matter. However for Cincy I think you need a strong look at pitching Hamels in game 2.— phasor
- look at it this way, the only back to back games in the NLDS are 3&4( If game 4 is needed). By going Halladay, Oswalt, Hamels, gives you a lefty/righty on back to back games instead of righty/righty
