Since the NLCS began in 1969 the Phillies have been to the NLCS eight times and have won five pennants (years in which they won the pennant are in bold):
1976, 1977, 1978, 1980, 1983, 1993, 2008, 2009.
The Phillies were the last of the 16 franchises that started playing for the World Series in 1903 to take the title; they did not record their first World Series victory until 1980. Since then they have added the 2008 title. That's only two World Championships in almost 110 seasons. This team, which is going for its third consecutive pennant, is certainly the best team the Phillies have ever fielded.
Since the NLCS began in 1969 the Giants have been to the NLCS only four times and have won two pennants (years in which they won the pennant are in bold):
1971, 1987, 1989, 2002
Since they moved to San Francisco before the 1958 season, the Giants have never won the World Series.
The Phillies and Giants have never met in the NLCS. Given that these are two of the original eight NL franchises that began contesting for the World Series in 1903, it is remarkable how little history they have with each other. In 1950, the Phillies beat the Dodgers by two games to win the pennant, with the Giants coming in third, five games behind. In 1964, the Phillies and Giants were both part of a wild scramble for the National League pennant. The Phillies famously blew a 6 1/2 game lead with only two weeks to go, losing the pennant to the Cardinals. The Giants finished in fourth place, three games behind the Cardinals, but they were never really close to winning it all. And that's about it.
Over the last three years, the Phillies have absolutely crushed National League competition. Here is their playoff results the last two years:
2008 NLDS: Phillies 3, Brewers 1
2008 NLCS: Phillies 4, Dodgers 1
2009 NLDS: Phillies 3, Rockies 1
2009 NLDS: Phillies 4, Dodgers 1
2010 NLDS: Phillies 3, Reds 0
That's a record of 17-4. It should be noted, however, that the Phillies were only 3-3 against the Giants this year. Here were the results of those games (home team listed first):
04/26/10: San Francisco 5 - 1 Philadelphia
04/27/10: San Francisco 6 - 2 Philadelphia
04/28/10: San Francisco 6 - 7 Philadelphia (11 innings)
08/17/10: Philadelphia 9- 3 San Francisco
08/18/10: Philadelphia 8 - 2 San Francisco
08/19/10: Philadelphia 2- 5 San Francisco
My own view is that the Phillies are a great, great team, and I think they will be the first NL team to win three consecutive pennants since the 1942-1944 Cardinals. San Francisco does have some great starting pitchers, but I don't think they have enough offense to hold off the Phillies over the course of a seven-game series. I also don't think they are ready for the intensity that the Phillies will bring to the table.
No comments:
Post a Comment