The Whole Delivery

Coming into the postseason , Cliff Lee had yet to record a playoff win, let alone pitch in the postseason. After four starts, no question that Cliff Lee is the best pitcher in baseball at this point. A masterful performance that featured 10 strikeouts, no walks, and a jaw dropping behind the back fielding play from Lee spurred the defending champion to a dominant 6-1 Game 1 win in the World Series. This is how good the CY Young winner of 2008 was: He allowed no runner to third base before the 9th inning, and he also prevented two runners form being on base at the same time before the final frame. Outside of the always brilliant Derek Jeter (who again, with a 3 for 5 performance and the only run scored for the Yankees in this game), Lee flummoxed the entire Yankee lineup all night. He baffled the in form Alex Rodriguez with three strikeouts, took the confident bats away from dangerous youngsters Robinson Cano and Melky Cabrera, and took any threat from the veteran bats of Jorge Posada ...

The Tigers should get the co-award for getting the still underrated Jerrod Washburn for two left handed prospects, Luke French and Mauricio Robles. With Washburn, Justin Verlander, and Edwin Jackson (boy, the Rays wish they had him still probably despite all their young pitching), that is really as potent of a 1,2,3 in baseball as there is. But even before the way George Sherrill pitched last night , to me, the Dodgers made the second best move after the Phillies got Cliff Lee (boy, did Lee pitch well or what in his debut last night). They needed a quality lefty in their bullpen, and they did more than get a quality lefty. They got an all star closer in Sherrill, who won't mind being the second man in the pen now, getting holds while Jonathan Broxton closes the door (his blown save against the Cardinals this week, not withstanding.) The Dodgers' rotation, despite the development of Chad Billingsley and Clayton Kershaw, may not be better than the Phillies with Lee now. But it...