Dodgers pounce on Moyer early, smother Phillies 7-2

The Dodgers needed an inning and a third to chop down old oak Jamie Moyer, while the Phillies couldn’t muster an attack against Hiroki Kuroda and company, as the Dodgers cut the Phillies’ series lead in half in a one-sided Game 3.

The Dodgers went on the attack right out of the chute and made quick work of Moyer, who allowed five runs on five hits and a hit batsman in the first, the fatal blow coming on a Blake Dewitt bases-clearing triple when it looked like Moyer could escape with minimal damage. Then in the second, Rafael Furcal greeted him with a first-pitch home run, making it three hits coming on the first pitch. It was reason enough for manager Charlie Manuel to give him the hook, lifting him before Manny Ramirez and the buzzards would get a second crack.

The dirty little secret so far in the post-season is that the Phillies’ offense hasn’t been very good, and tonight was no exception. Dodgers pitching held the Phils down, including an 0-for-8 from the top of the order. Jimmy Rollins is now 1-for-13 with 6 strikeouts in the NLCS and has suddenly turned into a complete wimp at the plate. The bad at bats were shared by almost everyone on a night when tempers flared and the Dodgers retaliated for Friday’s throw behind Manny Ramirez. The benches cleared after Shane Victorino was buzzed by Kuroda, and Ramirez needed to be restrained from going after … pick someone … but order was restored and the game passed quietly after the second, which was good news for Dodgers fans who wanted to get that extra early jump on traffic.

The Phils used five pitchers after Moyer, including the playoff debut of J.A. Happ, who allowed a run on three hits and two walks over three innings.

The Phils try to rebound tomorrow with Joe Blanton scheduled to face Derek Lowe.

Comments

[diggitydave]

Phils have looked abominable in each of Kuroda's previous starts against them so I can't say this game tonight was a monumental shock. I was pretty furious earlier, but the more you think about it, a game like tonight was bound to happen, as I don't think any rational fan expected the Phils to sweep a good club like the Dodgers.

Phillies need to make Derek Lowe throw pitches tomorrow, as he'll surely be on a pitch count going on three days rest. The recipe for tomorrow has to include Jimmy getting on base as it's been made abundantly clear that, as he goes, so goes the offense.

A silver lining on the cloud tonight has to be Howard's couple good at-bats, as he finally put some good wood on the bat. Hopefully that's a sign of better games to come.

Don't get too down after a game like tonight - Dodgers are expected to defend their home turf, and I'm sure this team will be ready to play tomorrow and get back on the winning side behind Blanton.

[LA Jeff]

Just got back from the game...ugh...

[MG]

Agree with diggitydave. No cause for concern or panic. This was a game the Dodgers had to have if they had any shot of taking this series. They play like it from the opening AB and got a stellar performance from Kuroda.

Dodgers still have to go with a guy (Lowe) on 3-days rest tomorrow night and can't be thrilled about a potential Billingsley-Hamels matchup on Wed. night either. Ideally, Phils win tomorrow night to put them in the driver's seat for this series but all they have to do is win 1 in LA.

[doubleh]

I actually had a feeling that Game 3 was going to be a loss. Moyer has a bad history with the Dodgers in general and Manny in particular; they are patient hitters who don't chase his stuff.

Hope Mitchypoo is right. Hope Lowe is a little tired going on short rest and that the Phils will have him figured out facing him so soon again and will hit him better.

[bay_area_phan]

The pitching matchups the next 2 days are pretty favorable for the Phillies. Lowe on 3 days rest is a big question mark and, good as Billingsley (normally) is, Cole is better still. Unfortunately, the pitching matchups in Games 6 & 7 are not so favorable. After what Kuroda has done to us 3 games in a row, I don't relish facing him again, and a rested Lowe would certainly have an advantage over Moyer or Blanton.

Life would sure be nice if we could win the next 2 and close out the series.

[bay_area_phan]

Actually, the Phillies haven't hit well in this series and their starting pitching, excluding Hamels, has been dreadful. The ERA of our 3 starters in this series is a horrendous 8.80 and our team average is only .255 -- but just .224 if you throw out Myers' 3 hits. Bad hitting and bad starting pitching is about as sure a recipe as there is for playoff failure. We should count ourselves very fortunate to be up 2-1.

[steve]

With a day off on Tuesday and a day off on Thursday, I think we'd be better off not using Moyer again in this series.

[bay_area_phan]

Last point. I don't mean to beat a guy while he's down but, considering how Dobbs has hit over the last few weeks, it's really imcomprehensible how Cholly can keep starting Feliz against right-handers. Feliz has been absolutely horrendous in the 2 games he has started; in fact, even his defense has been less than stellar as he has misplayed one ball in Game and missed another one today that was potentially playable.

Dobbs has gotten 2 hits in each playoff game he has started and, in Game 2 of this series, he started our 4-run rally in the second inning after Burrell & Werth both began the inning by striking out. If Feliz had been in the lineup, there would not have been any 4-run rally. It would have been a 1-2-3 inning.

In a series where the Dodgers are throwing all right-handed starters at us, and several of our key players aren't hitting a lick (i.e., Rollins, Howard, Victorino), Cholly is really hurting the team by his stubborn refusal to start Dobbs more than once every 4th game. I realize this isn't exactly a novel observation on my part. But it simply boggles the mind why a manager who is known for going with the hot hand would continue to do this. Dobbs simply has to start tomorrow and, for that matter, I think it might also be time to give Stairs a start over the struggling Jayson Werth. I'm not under any illusions that Joe Blanton is going to repeat his performance from the NLDS tomorrow. In all likeihood, we'll get 6-inning, 3-run Joe Blanton tomorrow, which means we need to score some runs to win.

[Tray]

This loss doesn't worry me as far as this series goes, but I'm very pessimistic about our chances against Boston or Tampa Bay, assuming we make it that far. Very inconsistent offense and I really can't see guys like Myers or Moyer having much success against Boston's hitters. Maybe Tampa Bay's, but I think they'd more or less shut us down.

[Mark B.]

The Phillies offense has to come alive again to take this series. Moyer deserves a pass for a bad game considering all he’s done this season.

I was hoping for good playoffs for Moyer to put him in contention for the CY Young. Now, I don’t know.

[Yikes!]

No need to panic- true. But it still stings and pisses me off.

[Matt]

I suppose it's too much to ask Rollins to try to bunt his way on to get something started for him and his team? No?

Sigh.

[EastFallowfield]

My favorite stupid comments on Fox were when they quoted Torre as saying "Momentum can change in an instant". Phils had all the momentum and just like that LA does.

If momentum meant anything, it wouldn't change in an instant and LA would be down 3-0.

[KMC]

Anyone else notice when McCarver said that the main problem with Feliz was that he looked at too mang pitches?

[phargo]

Good Morning.

I don't think LA has momentum, whatever that is. Didn't Joe Leiberman say he had momentum, too?

I have to admit I was expecting a loss last night, which doesn't mean I like it. But I actually think Joe Blanton lightning could strike twice.

I would very much like to see a bit more of Greg Dobbs. (At the plate, I mean.)

Where have you gone, Jayson Werth?

Have a good day, go Joe, and Go Go Go Phils!

[phlipper]

My nature as a Phils fan leads me to start feeling panicked - but I have to admit this team has been impressive and far exceeded my expectations.

All year, I said they would make the playoffs but be lucky to win more than one game once they got their because they had no strong starters other than Hamels. Well, they've already won 5 games.

And I counted them out when they dropped behind the Mutts at the end of the season: I thought "Season = Over" was entirely accurate.

But this team has shown way more character than I expected. That doesn't mean that I'm confident - I am still a Phillies fan. But I am less panicked then I would normally be.

[phlipper]

So, what's the Beerleaguer opinion? Start Hamels tonight so he's available for a game 7, or go with Blanton tonight and have to go with Moyer if there's a game 7?

For the record, I'm behind starting Blanton tonight.

[Bonehead]

Does anyone here believe that, at some point in his career as he matures as a pitcher, Hamels will become the kind of guy that you can ask to start on three days rest when needed? He sure isn't that guy now.

Because of this, I, too, agree with starting Bulldog Joe tonight.

[Shiny Demon]

Yes, a disappointing game last night. Moyer's performance and the silent Phillies bats were particularly disheartening. However, the Phils defense was sharp, they made a lot of really nice plays in the field, and they didn't commit any bonehead errors to turn the game into a complete embarrassment.

No need to panic yet. I think everyone predicted a long series at the outset. Personally, I feel like the Phils are playing with house money right now because they've exceeded all my expectations this year. I'm very happy just to be watching them in the NLCS.

[curt]

Obviously, the Dodgers are the wrong team for Grandpa. 4 hits on 5 pitches (or whatever) right out of the chute is really all you need to know.

Cholly will have to do whatever is required to make sure Grandpa doesn't pitch again.

[BobbyD]

Did anyone really think the Phils were going to win the first three games of the series?

[Dickie Thon]

Yesterday in MLB chat, I predicted (an hour before the game) a 7-2 phillies loss (exactly), that moyer would last less than two innings, and that the phils would score one run near the beginning and one run near the end of the game. Maybe I should predict less :).

[John]

BAP: I'm sure we'll see Dobbs tonight. That's the whole problem with how Charlie uses them -- he waits for the offense to be stumped against a RHP before making the switch.

[loctastic]

@KMC: McCarver said that Feliz looks at too many strikes, not pitches.

Moyer is not getting his borderline pitches called for strikes. This is the post-season, with more scrutiny, so I would imagine this to continue to be the case.

So if this goes 7, who starts that game?

[J. Weitzel]

Blanton, but only by a nose.

[Reed]

JRoll needs to wake the Ph up and start showing some life. Jason, you said it, WIMP, and one that is yawning while sitting on the bench.

I feel as if the Dodgers, although down 2-1, are having their way with the Phils mentally. After seeing Manny talk sheet to Ruiz, I was disappointed that Ruiz didn't stand up and get in his face.

The Dodgers are a bunch of whiners.

Hopefully, Kentucky Joe can do what he did in the NLDS. They win tonight, they win the series.

[thephaithful]

I'm not particularly satisfied with how Game 3 went, but I wasn't really expecting a sweep of the series or anything.

They've got no excuse not to jump on Lowe tonight. They just saw his stuff on Thursday, sinker/slider every single time. If they come into this game pounding balls into the ground like Game 1 then they're all complete idiots.

[thephaithful]

And an added bonus for the Phils - Game 6 would be Myers vs. Kuroda. With Myers in the lineup maybe we can actually score runs off the guy.

[Haddon Heights Harv]

I think a sweep was way more than we had a right to expect. We need a win in LA... two would be mo' betta. I think we'll hit Lowe, and also that Bulldog Blanton will get us to the 7th.

Notice that Manny made sure he had a couple of guys "holding him back" from the Fightins' when the benches cleared. If my memory serves, the last guy he went after was Don Zimmer, who went to high school with Moses.

[stjoehawk]

" If my memory serves, the last guy he went after was Don Zimmer, who went to high school with Moses. "

I think it was Pedro Martinez who went after Zimmer.

[Reed]

yeah, Manny only throws down clubhouse attendants

I am so sick of the series being ALL ABOUT MANNY AND ALL ABOUT THE DODGERS. I always love when we are underdogs. Last night they played like the Pirates. Time to play like the Phightin Phils.

[J. Weitzel]

I have a pretty good feeling about tonight with Blanton going and Lowe on short rest. Let's get some better at bats and give Dobbs the nod.

[MPN]

We need to take only one of these LA games to be in good shape (particularly as I have tickets for game 6!) heading back to Philly. I like our chances of that with either Blanton or Cole.

As for Manny, he is a punk. The guy he pushed down was a 65 year old traveling secretary for the Red Sox. His offense? He couldn't get Manny more tickets for a game at Tropicana Field.

[Matt]

If J-Roll and Vic start out the game pounding a couple of ground balls to second base, I'm going to be pissed.

[MPN]

Another amazing thing about last night was that our bullpen pitched 7 2/3 innings of 1 run ball. Very impressive considering that Happ hadn't pitched in about 130 years....

[Bonehead]

Manny is like T.O....probably the best at what he does, but you need to ask yourself if he's worth the aggravation. The offseason FA market for him will be interesting to follow.

As weak as the Phil's outfield looks to be next season, I wouldn't want the Phils to go anywhere near him.

[Matt]

I'd say the Dodgers think Manny is worth the aggravation at the moment. Of course, they know they only have to put up with him for another couple of weeks.

[MPN]

Matt: they still need to win three out of four to extend that week to the plural form.

[Matt]

That's true. I still think we win 2 of 3, but even if we win just one, we're in good shape. I think.

[RSB]

This is probably the first time all year that Moyer has had back-to-back poor starts, but I think he deserves more of a benefit of the doubt than a lot of people are willing to give him. To say that your winningest and most consistent pitcher ought to suddenly be yanked from the rotation is more than a bit unreasonable. Call it ageism.

[EastFallowfield]

It's probably easier to deal with Manny if you know that some other team is paying him to pile up stats for you.

[EastFallowfield]

Yo, new thread

[Ian]

Because of the extra off day, Torre made the right decision to bring the #1 guy in on three days rest, because Lowe will get four days rest for game 7 if necc. He made that decision with less of a difference between his #1 and 2 and 3 guys, and he's won a lot of World Series.

It seems to me to be a no-brainer: if ever there was a time to use Hamels on 3 days rest this is it. If game 7 comes you're going to have Lowe (4 days rest) against either Blanton or Moyer.

[Phils2611]

I don't see anything to worry about. Moyer just had another bad game, and our bullpen was solid.

Our offense didn't produce, but it's hard to get excited when the home team jumps on you for 5 runs in the 1st, and it's the first game of the NLCS in LA. Kuroda has owned us this year, so no big deal.

I think tonight we'll have had a chance to adapt to being in LA, dealing with their stadium and crowd, and Lowe shouldn't have anything we haven't seen already...

If the Dodgers win tonight, I feel they'll win Wednesday as well, and even with the Phillies coming home, that'll be tough..

Best of luck to the Phillies, and I'm hoping for a win tonight in LA!