Wait until next year

I managed to watch all of Friday’s Dodgers/Phillies game, and certainly picked a good one. A really absorbing contest, a very much the proverbial pitchers duel. Pedro Martinez, for the Phillies, and Vicente Padilla, for the Dodgers, were outstanding. A real masterclass. Martinez gave nothing away, while Padilla had just the one bad pitch. Unfortunately for him Ryan Howard got on it for a solo home run. I caught Padilla pitching for Texas earlier this season, and while not brilliant, I thought he looked reasonable enough. However, I would never have guessed at the time that he’d be pitching so well, in the play-offs, and for the Dodgers too.

The Dodgers managed to fight back, and eventually won 2-1. So, we’re 1-1 in that series and if this game is anything to go by, we’re in for some very close-run games.

The Dodgers won essentially on Phillies mistakes, following misfields, and a walk with the bases full. Meanwhile, in an absolute epic last night the Yankees beat the Angels in the thirteenth inning, again after a fielding error.

There have been hour upon hour of top-draw play in the play-offs, but still the recurring theme is teams losing games after errors. I guess when things are that close, and teams so well matched, it is more likely that one terrible mistake will change a game, rather than one moment of genius. It really feels like in each game it is a case of who is going to blink first. And the Yankees, in particular, don’t look like blinking.