The Whole Delivery

It will be unfathomable for some to look back and see that the question of whether Roy Halladay could pitch in the postseason was actually uttered. It really was a legitimate ask, especially considering how the proven playoff performer he replaced, Cliff Lee, just came off another impressive outing to start baseball's second season. Now that question will be eligible for all the audio laugh tracks around the country. In what is clearly the greatest debut ever for a pitcher in the postseason, Halladay produced only the 2nd no-hitter in postseason history to give the Phillies a historic 4-0 Game 1 victory over the Reds. Even more on this remarkable feat later. And to see all 27 outs , there's the link.

Two weeks remain in the long winding road of ups and downs that is the Major League Baseball season, with two marquee series tonight. Both the American and National Leagues have their East divisions come down to the wire races and featured them starting their important series tonight. After a thrilling series last week, the Rays and the Yankees will duel in the Stadium tonight, while the Braves and the Phillies battle in their final three meetings this year (unless both make the postseason) at Citizens Bank in Philly. For the two time defending NL champs, they will send the resurgent Cole Hamels to the mound, as he oppose rookie Brandon Beachy, who replaces the injured Jair Jurrjens. You would favor the Phillies to pan their NL East lead to four games tonight in this matchup, but the Braves are coming off a confidence boost sweep over a Mets team that has packed it in for the rest of 2010. Meanwhile, Matt Garza will look for better success against the reigning World Champions, as...

All that is required is for Roy Oswalt to wave his no-trade clause : Oswalt is scheduled to pitch for the Astros on Friday at Minute Maid Park, and the both sides are hoping to get the deal done at some point Thursday. Oswalt is owed about $5 million more this year and is due to make $16 million next season in the last year of his contract, but there's a club option for 2012 that would pay him another $16 million. He said last week the option wouldn't be an issue when it came to approving a trade. The Astros have scouted Phillies left-hander J.A. Happ's most recent starts, and he likely would be included in the deal. Wade also personally scouted Philadelphia's Class A Lakewood affiliate earlier this month. First baseman Jonathan Singleton, an eighth-round pick in the 2009 First-Year Player Draft, could be included in the deal. Singleton, 18, is hitting .319 with 12 home runs, 57 RBIs and a .962 on-base-plus-slugging percentage in 248 at-bats. The Astros have be...

Photo from Getty Images Looks like he will be there for the rest of his career : The Phillies signed slugger Ryan Howard to a five-year contract extension on Monday that will run through the 2016 season and guarantees him at least $125 million. The deal, which includes a club option for a sixth year, will pay the first baseman $20 million for the 2012 and 2013 seasons and $25 million for each season from 2014-16. Howard's sixth-year option is worth $23 million and includes a $10 million buyout. Howard's deal also includes awards bonuses and a limited no-trade clause, the Phillies said in announcing the deal. The 30-year-old first baseman is off to a strong start in 2010, hitting .275 with three homers and 16 RBIs so far. Worked on his fielding and has been a class act in the organization. Good for him.

I really don't get this trade if you are giving up a guy in Cliff Lee, who proved himself as the best pitcher in the most recent postseason . Sports Illustrated's Jon Heyman reported that a three-way trade has been agreed to involving Philadelphia, the Blue Jays and the Mariners, though he did not specify which players are moving besides Halladay coming to the Phillies. A source said Monday that Halladay is in Philadelphia, likely to take a physical and talk about a contract extension. The Phillies are trying to sign Halladay to an extension before they complete the trade for the former American League Cy Young Award winner. Halladay would waive his no-trade clause to pitch for the Phillies. It is unclear who will be part of the deal, but there have been rumors that Cliff Lee could be involved. The Phillies could ship Lee to another team in return for prospects, which they possibly could spin to the Blue Jays to complete the deal. It appears Phillies GM Ruben Amaro viewed this...

Watch live video from LATENCHISUSA.COM on Justin.tv The key to this game is well known of course: How long can Pedro/Andy go, which bullpen will be stable tonight, and what will Howard and Teixiera do at the plate tonight. But as always with big games, errors can play a big factor, and will Shane Victorino's hand be okay? The full revie and updates, as I think this is clinch night at the new Yankees Stadium.

Will Burnett pitching this game hurt Giradi here? We'll see. The few review from me to come. But enjoy the one at MLB.com .

Ibanez causing the Yankees problems again, as Matt Stairs drives him home. 1-0 Phillies here in the bottom of the second as of this post. Watch live video from RYTE STATION 2 on Justin.tv

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 Philadelphia Phillies look to become the first National League team since the Cincinnati Reds 33 years ago to repeat as MLB World Series Champions, as they take on a New York Yankees side looking for a 27th championship in their glorious franchise history. Both teams have obviously proven themselves to no question be the best two teams to reach the ultimate stage of professional baseball this year. There was no "timely peak at the right time" or "ride an ace pitcher on his shoulders" for neither side, as their play all season placed them in position to excel at the highest level in their league's playoffs. Since June, the Yankees were by far the best team in the American league, as there bullpen was solidified with Phil Hughes emerging as the set up man already with lefty Phil Coke to cover the immaculate Mariano Rivera. It also helped that Mark Teixiera showed what a great off season acquisition he was as well as Alex Rodriguez getting over his hip surgery,...

Simple review: I thought the winner of this Game would win the series. Figuring how this thing ended in addition to that prediction, this one really really really is going to be a long two days for the Dodgers heading into Game 5 on Wednesday. Brutal for them, as their closer gets bitten against them tonight just like he did last year .

Photo from MLB.com Cliff Lee really has taken Cole Hamels swag and thensome (and I usually hate saying the word "swag"). Philadelphia fans won't mind at all though. And again, I don't understand all these worries about the Dodgers hitting. When you face a Hall of Fame pitcher (Pedro Martinez) and an in-form ace (Lee) you are bound to struggle if they are on top of their game. Especially when you are at the League Championship stage. The real concern will start for the Dodgers if they don't get anything generated against Joe Blanton tomorrow. And Randy Wolf has got to give them a quality start like Vincente Padilla gave them on Friday.

After starring last night to pick up a poor outing by Cole Hamels, the Phillies' bullpen did the exact opposite today after a remarkable gem by Pedro Martinez. The Dodgers have even up this National League Championship Series at one game all. But despite the Blues grit and terrific start they got from Vincente Padilla as well, the World Champions will certainly say that their mistakes cost them a chance to go up 2-0 going home. In addition, some questionable bullpen decision made by Charlie Manuel will come under scrutiny. Chan Ho Park somehow became the set up man for this team today, and confusion will reign from Park's new sudden promotion. Unlike his brilliance inning last night , Park just couldn't get the job down today. But the biggest moment of the game obviously came later that inning. Chase Utley's latest costly error, a second consecutive wild over throw while trying to turn a double play at turning a double play, led to Juan Pierre scoring to tie the game. ...

Photo from Getty Images' Stephen Dunn Coming into this series, despite the confidence they got in the Rockies series, the Phillies bullpen was still viewed as inferior to the team they beat last year at this ultimate National League stage. But after tonight, that belief maybe altered. Possibly lost in all the offense explosion in this game, Chan Ho Park was arguably the MVP of this game. He was just so clutch in that 7th inning and was the difference for me in this game. Clayton Kershaw lost focus after dominating the first 4 innings, giving up a big three run home run to Carlos Ruiz, and then a two out double to Ryan Howard to knock him out of the ball game. Cole Hamels though was no better in the 5th either. His three run homer at the hands of Manny Ramirez signaled that Cliff Lee and not Hamels right now is the ace of this staff. His change up is not as dominant as it was last year, and there will be questions going into his next start in this series if he can turn it around. Bu...

Carlos Gonzalez was certainly a key factor in the Rockies getting a big Game 2 win Whether the pending birth of his son or whatever affected him today, Cole Hamels just couldn't follow through like Cliff Lee did yesterday. But I give massive credit to the great job Jim Tracy did today managing . Though Aaron Cook has proven himself to be a very tough pitcher whenever he has command of his sinker and his healthy, his outing today was still a surprising boon against last year's World Series MVP today. However, the star of the game might as well be Carlos Gonzalez, who after Tracy decided to swamp him and Dexter Fowler in the 1-2 hole of the lineup, was outstanding today. He scored the first run and continued to get on baseball all day today. He was the star of the game for me no question, though it was a team effort of course. Both team's bullpens did real well today, so I guess that could be a sliver lining that Philly fans can take from this loss. But this is a game that on...

There were questions going into game 1 of this series of whether Charlie Manuel made the right decision to send Cliff Lee to the mound instead of Cole Hamels. He did. Outside of a late Troy Tulowitzi single that prevented the shoutout, Lee stifled a potent Rockies attack with his combination of mid 90's fastball and a 10 to 3 curveball. The Rockies blew the chance to get to Lee in the 1st inning with two on, and it was over for their hitters from then on until it was too late. For the Rockies, their ace Ubaldo Jimenez seem to join with Lee in making this another classic pitcher's postseason duel after four innings. But the 25 year old abandoned his 98-100 fastball too early, getting too cute with his other pitches and leading the defending world champions to capitalize on the off speed stuff. That was a game that the Rockies had to win in my mind. Without Jorge De La Rosa, Jimenez had to pitch a gem for the Rockies today in order to be in good shape in this series. But he didn...

Shame they won't repeat, especially with how Brad Lidge is on his usual two year AWOL plan. But good for Charlie Manuel (not Jerry, i wasn't being sarcastic there, but in the next sentence) and a class team in my eyes. Looks like Francisco Rodriguez was just a bit outside with his prediction. Meanwhile, the Twins basically had their season ended by the Tigers tonight. That's what happens when you place all your hopes on Carl Pavano. And though I knew Ricky Nolasco was a solid pitcher, I never ever knew he could be this dominant . LIKE, record book time dominant.

All of Philadelphia is angry with him and ready to run him out of town ...........unless he helps them repeat this year.

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...