Phils Take Game One – Utley Is The Stud

The Phillies took game one of the Series by a hair, 3-2, in St. Petersburg, FL.   The stud of the game?  None other than the man in the three hole for the Phils, Chase Utley.  He went 2 for 4 with a run and two RBI, as well as two stolen bases in the World Series opener.  Not too shabby.  

 But, as we all know, one game does not a World Series make.  So, although Utley could be considered the game one MVP for the Phils (although one could make an argument for Cole Hamels too,) he’ll need to continue to produce throughout the Series to see a real lasting impact on his baseball cards’ value.

Some of the guys we expect to see some production from got off to a rocky start in game one.  For the Phils, Ryan Howard went o for 4 with four left on base and Jimmy Rollins went o for 5 with five left on base.  Don’t expect this to be a trend.  In the end, it did not have an impact on the outcome of the game. 

For the Rays, all-everything rookie Evan Longoria, went o for4 with three strikeouts.  If this trend continues, which I don’t think it will by the way, it will have a minor negative impact on the rookie’s card values.  B.J. Upton was o for 4 with five left on base.

Oh, by the way, the stats for Cole Hamels, who has had the most consistent postseason of any starting pitcher:  7 innings pitched, 2 earned runs, 5 strikeouts and he got the win.  He’s now 4 and 0 in this year’s postseason.

Tonight will see Brett Myers go up against James Shields on the mound in St. Petersburg.  Look for a strong outing from the Tampa Bay righty.