2006 Upper Deck #750 Shane VictorinoThere has been a little bit of inside pitching during the entire NLCS this year. The Phils need to pitch inside to hitters like Manny Ramirez and Russell Martin. Similarly the Phils have batters like Chase Utley who like to stand right on top of the plate and will find inside pitches coming at them.
During game 3 the Dodgers and Phils almost found themselves in a brawl when a ball was thrown near Shane Victorino's head. Victorino saved his best response to the purpose pitch for a crucial at-bat the following night - a game tying homer in the 8th inning. This homer turned around game four and was followed by Matt Stairs mammoth go-ahead home run a few batters later.
Head hunting is nothing new to Phillies Playoff Baseball. During the Phillies Royals World Series in 1980, Dickie Noles only got into one game, a loss in game 4, but he is forever remembered in Phillies lore as the man who knocked down George Brett. Yes, The Phils did lost game 4, but they would take games 5 and 6 to win the pennant. Perhaps it was Noles inside heat that fired up the Phils and pushed them on to the Series victory.
2004 Upper Deck Legends Timeless Teams #193 Memorable Moments - Dickie Noles
I remember the Noles knockdown.
ReplyDeleteTV's making too big of a deal about all the knockdown stuff. As a Dodger fan, I think my Dodgers got a little too excited about it, too. I respect both teams though for making sure it didn't get out of hand.
I agree. it is just good old fashioned baseball. Torre and Manuel are both pretty old school baseball guys they know how to handle their teams.
ReplyDeleteWho'd have thought that Dickie Noles, of all people, would appear on a card called Memorable Moments. Most of his career was pretty forgettable.
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