ARROYO
ATTEMPTING TO QUIET PHILLY; CINCY TRYING TO LIGHT UP OSWAT
10.8.10 BY:MEH ARROYO AND A ROY-O
ARROYO ATTEMPTING TO
QUIET PHILLY; CINCY SEEKING TO LIGHT UP OSWAT Ouch. The Reds'
National League leading offense was completely shut down by Roy Halladay on
Wednesday night during game one of the NLDS between Cincinnati and
Philadelphia. During Halladay's nine innings of work, he allowed only Jay
Bruce to reach base via walk in the fifth inning. It was just the second
no-hitter hurled in the playoffs (Yankee Don Larsen pitched a perfect game
during the 1956 World Series against the Brooklyn Dodgers) and it occurred
while Mr. Halladay was making his first postseason appearance since his
entrance into the majors in 1998 with the Toronto Blue Jays.
“It was a bad combination with (Home plate Umpire John Hirshbeck) back
there,”
Orlando Cabrera said.
“He gave him every single pitch. A guy like Halladay feeds like that. It
makes it nearly impossible with a guy like that. He can hit every single
corner, and he was low in the zone. He and the umpire threw a no-hitter.
Another umpire and another zone, he wouldn’t have been able to throw a game
like that. Basically, he was getting every pitch. We had no chance.”
Halladay surrendered a career-high thirteen hits to the Reds earlier this
year on June 30. This time, on the
wrong end of baseball history, the Reds looked discombobulated Wednesday
night against Roy Halladay. As he meticulously worked an expanded strike
zone throughout the evening, Halladay struck out eight batters and allowed
just one ball to be hit hard all night and it was pitcher Travis Wood who
did so. Edinson Volquez started for the Reds and gave them no chance after
he lasted only 1.2 innings and allowed four earned runs on four hits. But at
the end of the night, no one was to blame except Roy Halladay for the Reds'
4-0 loss.
"A loss is a loss. If we had lost 10-9 and gotten 15 hits, it's the same
result,"
Drew Stubbs said.
"We'll come back Friday with a re-energized effort and hopefully have
success."
On Friday the Reds will face a bona fide Reds killer in Roy Oswalt at 6:07pm
in Philadelphia. Although Oswalt owns a career 23-3 record with a 2.81 ERA
during 32 starts against the Reds, the damage was done against bad
Cincinnati teams from 2001 to '08. During the past two years,
Oswalt has made six starts against the Reds and has failed to receive a
victory. In two starts with the Astros this season, Oswalt is 0-2 with a
6.75 ERA against the Reds. Hopefully Oswalt's Cincinnati slaying stays in
the past. Even though games three and four will be in Cincinnati, a 2-0
deficit will be extremely difficult to overcome.
Roy Oswalt owns a 150-83 career record with a 3.18 ERA. He spent nine full
seasons (2001-'09) with the Houston Astros and made twenty starts for them
this season before being traded to the Phillies on July 29. Oswalt went 6-12
with a 3.42 ERA while in Houston this year and went 7-1 with a 1.74 ERA
after the trade during his twelve starts in Philadelphia. The only team that
has beat Roy Oswalt since he's been with the Phillies was the Washington
Nationals when they defeated Philadelphia 8-1 on July 30. During Oswalt's
final game as an Astro on July 24, he allowed six earned runs on nine hits
receiving the loss in the midst of a 7-0 Cincinnati Reds victory. Joey Votto
and Ramon Hernandez both went deep against Oswalt and drove in two runs a
piece. Laynce Nix went 3-3 and drove in two runs.
Nix, who will get the
start on Friday, has 17 career at-bats against Oswalt and has hit at a
.529 clip including two homers and four RBI. Out of the Reds' starters,
Scott Rolen (.214) and Jay Bruce (.241) own the worst averages against
Oswalt while Joey Votto (.333), Brandon Phillips (.316), and Drew Stubbs
(.333) have all had success against the veteran right-hander. During his ten
major league seasons, Oswalt made eight postseason appearances with the
Astros ('04 and '05) and is undefeated (4-0) with a 3.66 ERA.
Bronson Arroyo will take the mound for Reds on Friday. Arroyo is a "big
game" pitcher and Friday's match up against the Phillies certainly qualifies
as a "big game." Attempting to tie the series at one game a piece, Arroyo
will be making his third postseason start. Arroyo made ten postseason
appearances during 2003-'05 with the Boston Red Sox and posted a 0-0 record
with a 7.41 ERA. Arroyo's first postseason start was during the 2004 ALDS
against the Angels. Arroyo went six innings an allowed two earned runs on
three hits while striking out seven. Advancing to the ALCS in '04, Arroyo
made another start for the Sox, but this time it wasn't so nice. Arroyo
lasted just four innings against the Yankees as he allowed seven earned runs
on eight hits. Despite Arroyo's struggles against New York the Sox ended up
winning that game, and the World Series. Against the Phillies during his
career Arroyo has made seven starts and is 1-5 with a 5.54 ERA.
"I expect a very Yankee Stadium-esque environment,"
said Arroyo, reminiscing about his days in Boston.
"I loved playing in the stadiums when guys are screaming obscenities about
my mother, you know what I mean?"
