National League
Cody Ross has been a player for the San Francisco Giants for less than two months, but his solo home run in the 6th inning and game-winning RBI in the 7th should endear him to fans for some time to come.Ross was acquired from the Florida Marlins on August 29 to provide a little more pop to a lineup devoid of a bona fide power hitter. Though Ross isn't exactly Ryan Howard or Prince Fielder, he did hit 22 and 24 homers in 2008 and 2009, respectively, as a Marlin.
In Monday's elimination of the Braves, advancing the Giants to the championship series with the Phillies, Ross' power poke in the 6th inning tied the game at 1-1 en route to a 3-2 win.
In the decisive 7th inning, the Giants loaded the bases on a Buster Posey single sandwiched between a pair of walks (to Aubrey Huff and Pat Burrell). After Juan Uribe reached on Alex Gonzalez's throwing error and Huff scored, Aaron Rowand struck out. With two outs, Ross singled to left, scoring Posey from third. Burrell was thrown out at the plate to end the inning.
Santiago Casilla held the Braves scoreless in the 7th and got two outs in the 8th, with Javier Lopez getting the third out. After walking Rick Ankiel and Eric Hinske, Brian Wilson finally ended the game when Melky Cabrera grounded out to third base.
The Giants will open the best-of-seven series on Saturday in Philadelphia for the right to advance to the World Series. The Phillies swept the Reds three straight and earned home field advantage by having the best regular season record in the league. The series promises plenty of great pitching. The Giants led the majors with the lowest staff ERA at 3.36. The Phillies were 5th in the NL and 6th overall, at 3.67.
American League
The ALDS series between the Rays and Rangers will be decided on Tuesday at 8:07 pm at Tropicana Field in Tampa. The series is tied at two games apiece.
No comments:
Post a Comment