Phillies 5, Dodgers 1

The Phillies capitalize on Dodger errors to win Game 5 and the series.

Cole Hamels got the win, he goes 2-0 in the NLCS. Chad Billingsley took the loss, he goes 0-2 in the NLCS.

Chad Billingsley got into trouble early and was pulled quickly. He gave up three runs in 2.2 innings. Greg Maddux gave up two unearned runs in the 5th, due in part to three Rafael Furcal errors in the inning. James McDonald pitched two scoreless innings in relief. Joe Beimel and Cory Wade combined to pitch a perfect 8th, and Hong-Chih Kuo pitched a scoreless 9th to hold the Phillies to five runs.

The Dodgers failed to mount much offense against the Phillies pitching staff. Manny Ramírez went 2-3 with a walk and a solo homerun, accounting for the Dodgers' only run. James Loney went 2-4 and Matt Kemp went 2-3 with a walk. Other than that, there was not much to speak of.

With the win, the Phillies win the series 4-1 and move on to the World Series.

Opinion: It's hard to be upset. Don't get me wrong, I am. But I kinda figured coming in that we didn't have much chance to come back. Chad Billingsley, who hasn't really been lights out since September, obviously was tired. His fastballs didn't have the same umph they had earlier in the season. His breaking balls didn't have as much break. This is only his third season in the majors, and coming into the playoffs, he'd already pitched 50 more innings than in any previous season. He was just not ready yet. The offense meanwhile, didn't offer much in support. The Phillies for the most part, pitched around Manny, and the Dodgers couldn't make them pay for it. The players sandwiched around Manny went 0-12. The two in front of Manny couldn't get on for him, the one behind him couldn't bring him in. It does tell me one thing, and with Manny, we need another bat. That's all stuff to be decided in the offseason... which I guess is now? So with that, I say adieu to the Dodgers' 2008 Season. 2nd Place in the National League, 1st Place in the NL West, 1st Place in our Hearts... Seriously, thank you Dodgers. It was a fun ride. We'll see you in Spring.

As for the blog. I'm going to take a break now and prepare for the offseason. I plan to do player profiles, free agent and trade analysis, and other such things. I'll see you all after the World Series...