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Phillies, Dodgers take control in National League series
2008-10-03
PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania (AFP) - The Philadelphia Phillies and Los Angeles Dodgers took control of their National League first-round playoff series, both moving within one game of advancing. Shane Victorino hit a grand slam and Brett Myers pitched seven solid innings for the Phillies, who beat the Milwaukee Brewers 5-2 to take a 2-0 lead in their best-of-five series on Thursday. In Chicago, the Dodgers cruised to a 10-3 victory over the error-prone Cubs, their second victory in two days at Wrigley Field giving them a 2-0 series lead and the chance to wrap up the series at home. Game three is on Saturday in Los Angeles. Russell Martin hit a bases-loaded double in a five-run second inning and Manny Ramirez hit his second homer in as many nights for the Dodgers, while Rafael Furcal had two hits, drove in a run and scored a run. The Cubs were victimized by their defense in the second inning, allowing four unearned runs. Andre Ethier and James Loney led off with singles. Matt Kemp struck out, then Blake DeWitt hit a grounder to second that Mark DeRosa failed to field cleanly, allowing Ethier to score the opening run. Casey Blake then reached on first baseman Derrek Lee's error. After Chad Billingsley struck out, Furcal laid down a bunt that got past Cubs starter Carlos Zambrano and allowed the second run to score before Martin cleared the bases with a double into the left-center field gap. "It wasn't good baseball," Cubs manager Lou Piniella said. If you play the way we played, it doesn't matter who youre opposition is. We talked about being a good defensive team, and tonight we weren't." Dodgers starter Billingsley, 24, made the lead stand up with 6 2/3 strong innings. The righthander allowed five hits and one run while walking one and striking out seven. Ramirez, who has 26 postseason homers, led off the fifth with a blast to straightaway center field to push the advantage to 6-0. Kemp added an RBI single in the seventh, Furcal and Ramirez added run-scoring hits in the eighth and Blake capped the Dodgers' scoring with an RBI single in the ninth. The Cubs, who led the NL in wins in the regular season and were favored to reach the World Series, didn't get a run on the board until the seventh, and added two in the ninth. In Philadelphia, Victorino took advantage of some wildness by Brewers starter CC Sabathia in the second inning. After Pedro Feliz drew Philadelphia even at 1-1 with an RBI double, Sabathia got Carlos Ruiz to ground out before failing to put away Myers during a nine-pitch at-bat, eventually walking the opposing pitcher. Jimmy Rollins walked on four straight pitches to load the bases, and Victorino belted a 1-2 pitch into the stands in left field to give the Phillies a 5-1 lead. It was the first grand slam in postseason history for the Phillies. "Wow, did that really just happen?" Victorino said. "Excitement," he added of the atmosphere. "It was just the excitement in the air." Said Rollins: "I think that played big. It made the mountain a little taller for them." Righthander Myers, who walked in a run in the first, settled in with the lead and retired 16 of 17 batters between the end of the first and the beginning of the seventh inning. He was charged with two runs and two hits, walked three, struck out four and hit one batter. Myers was also solid at the plate, thrilling the crowd as he worked Sabathia for the walk in front of Victorino's blast. Myers also had a 10-pitch at-bat in the fourth inning, fouling off four two-strike pitches, before flying out to center field to a standing ovation. He also singled in the fifth. "I know I'm a terrible hitter. ... I really can't explain it," Myers said. "Baseball's weird like that, to where you have a guy who pretty much can't hit a lick go up there and battle a guy that's as good as CC." The series heads to Milwaukee for game three on Saturday. "This thing ain't over yet," Brewers manager Dale Sveum said. "We get to go home now. (If) we win Saturday - it's a different ballgame."
Rockies beat Cardinals; spoil St. Louis' clincher (2009-09-26)Cubs win 10-5, end Phils' 10-game winning streak (2009-07-22)Phillies, Dodgers take control in National League series (2008-10-03)Brewers take final wild-card spot over Mets (2008-09-29)Brewers top Cubs, clinch playoff spot as Mets lose (2008-09-28)
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