For Philadelphia Phillies fans it’s a been a very long season full of ups and downs, highs and lows but now that that experience has culminated in a fourth straight NL East crown and home field throughout the MLB odds postseason it was all worth the wait.
The old adage that “what doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger” couldn’t ring more true than for the Phils (97-65). This season started off on the wrong foot with Philly actually sitting in last place in the division they’ve owned for the past few years. It wasn’t until a month or two into the MLB lines action that the team actually pulled out of the cellar position and got on the winning track. But injuries wreaked havoc on this lineup and even at the All Star break it looked as if the Phils would have to give up their MLB odds playoff hopes as the team just couldn’t get healthy. Then came the trade for starting pitcher Roy Oswalt after the break and everything just sort of fell into place.
Now the Phillies not only qualified for the playoffs, they won the division, finished with the best record in baseball and are the MLB odds favorite to win the World Series.
With ace Roy Halladay leading the rotation, Oswalt in the second position and Cole Hammels coming back to life this team has the best starting rotation in the MLB lines playoff action. Halladay is the NL Cy Young winner with a 21-10 record and 2.44 ERA he’s put together one of the best seasons by an NL starting pitcher in some time. Oswalt has also been lights out since coming over giving up just 7 runs in his pas 9 starts and racking up a 2.74 ERA. Hamels, the number pitcher before the invasion of the ‘Roys’ has also been stellar with a 3.06 ERA.
This team has been hit hardest by injuries at the plate but with MLB odds playoff veterans like Ryan Howard, Shane Victorino and Raul Ibanez in the lineup hits shouldn’t be too hard to come by.
But the key to the Phillies’ success will be the starting pitching and opponents will have a terribly difficult time getting on base against this three-headed monster.