Filed under: Giants, Phillies, MLB Playoffs, National League Championship Series
PHILADELPHIA -- The Phillies were on such a great run that you forgot that the Liberty Bell isn't Philadelphia's only local treasure with a crack in it.The upstart San Francisco Giants did enough on Saturday night to reveal a fracture or two in the defending National League champions, and the NLCS is looking a lot more interesting as a result.
Unbeaten in their previous seven openers of a postseason series, the Phillies fell 4-3 in their ballpark, where Giants ace Tim Lincecum outpitched Roy Halladay in Game 1 and Jimmy Rollins' hitting struggles became more significant.
West Coast Bias was guilty of thinking the Phils nearly unbeatable. So often have I watched NL West teams crumble against them in recent Octobers.
Saturday brought not only perfect weather for October baseball, but reminders of the Phillies' vulnerabilities.
Halladay's angry green eyes are what I'll remember most.
There were also two baseballs soaring into the left-field seats, each struck by Giants No. 8 hitter Cody Ross, both off a fastball from Halladay. Plus, the baseballs that vanished near home plate, disappearing underneath Phillies bats when Lincecum threw his deadly changeups.
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