Ryan Howard started the momentum for Philadelphia. His two-run triple in the bottom of the first inning opened the gates. When it was all said and done, the Phillies had handed the Dodgers an 11-0 thrashing.

Howard and Shane Victorino finished with three RBIs, while Jayson Werth had two. Every starter for the Phillies scored — including pitcher Cliff Lee.

Speaking of Lee, he was tremendous. In eight innings, he gave up three hits and no walks while striking out ten batters. The Dodgers, on the other hand, saw starting pitcher Hiroki Kuroda last only 1.1 innings.

The two teams play again on Monday. Randy Wolf will be on the hill for L.A., while Joe Blanton toes the rubber for Philly.

Ryan Howard - Philadelphia Phillies (Image: Zuma Press)

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In eight innings of work, Sabathia gave up four hits, one walk and one earned run while striking out seven. It was Sabathia second postseason win in two starts. Closer Mariano Rivera pitched the ninth inning to pick up the save.

To put runs on the board, the Yankees relied on Hideki Matsui, Alex Rodriguez and Derek Jeter. Matsui was 2-for-3 with two RBIs and a walk. Rodriguez was 1-for-3 with an RBI, while Jeter was 2-for-5 with one run and one RBI.

The Yankees and Angels will play Game 2 of the ALCS on Saturday. Joe Saunders will be on the mound for the Angels and A.J. Burnett will start for the Yankees.

CC Sabathia wins another playoff game for the Yankees (Image: Zuma Press)

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After James Loney hit a solo shot in the second inning, the Phillies responded by putting up five runs in the fifth. Three of the runs came on the Ruiz homer, while Ryan Howard added a two-run double. The Dodgers were able to close the gap to 5-4 but then Ibanez authored his three-run blast in the eighth.

In the bottom of the ninth, Brad Lidge was able to pick up his third straight save in the postseason. He gave up a hit to begin the inning but then was able to induce a double play.

Cole Hamels, who was amazing last year in the playoffs, picked up the win despite a so-so effort. In 5.1 innings, he gave up eight hits and four earned runs. Clayton Kershaw got the loss after giving up five earned runs in 4.2 innings.

Game 2 will be played on Friday and will pit Pedro Martinez against Vicente Padilla.

Brad Lidge and Carlos Ruiz celebrate the Game 1 win (Image: Zuma Press)

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If the Yankees decide to go with the three-man rotation, the rotation will consist of C.C. Sabathia, A.J. Burnett and Andy Pettitte.

“We are definitely considering possibly going to a three-man rotation in this round,” said Girardi, “but we’ll have to take a look at it and see how it goes.”

The biggest risk of going with the three-man rotation is Sabathia’s health. The Yankees have a ton of money invested in Sabathia and if he gets injured trying to pitch on shortened rest, that could be a catastrophic mistake.

Whoever is pitching for the Yankees will face a tall task. The Los Angels Angels have a fantastic lineup. In fact, stats point to the Angels having one of the deepest lineups in the history of baseball.

Can C.C. Sabathia handle the load? (Image: Zuma Press)

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With the game tied 5-5 in the top of the ninth, Ryan Howard hit a sacrifice fly to score Jimmy Rollins. In the bottom of the ninth, Phillies fans had to pray. Brad Lidge, Philadelphia’s closer who had a 7.21 ERA and an 0-8 record in the regular season, was able to record the save despite giving up a pair of hits.

In Game 4, the pitching matchup will be fantastic. The Phillies will send Cliff Lee to the mound, while the Rockies will go with Ubaldo Jimenez. The Rockies will need to win to stay alive, while the Phillies will attempt to move one step closer to back-to-back World Series championships.

Ryan Howard - Philadelphia Phillies

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For the second straight game, starting pitching was the key for the Angels. That fact is ironic considering that the Angels’ weakness all season long was supposedly their lack of starting pitching. Friday’s star was Jered Weaver, who went 7.1 innings while giving up only two hits, two walks and one earned run while striking out seven.

After the Red Sox struck first in the fourth inning, Kendry Morales tied it with a sac fly in the bottom half of the inning. Maicer Izturis put the Angels up with a single and then Erick Aybar put it away with a two-run triple in the seventh.

The Angels will try to wrap up the series on Sunday when Scott Kazmir takes on Clay Buchholz.

Erick Aybar Celebrates After His Key Triple (Image: Zuma Press)

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On the mound, John Lackey was dominant for Los Angeles. In 7.1 scoreless innings, he allowed four hits and one walk while striking out four batters. Darren Oliver pitched the final 1.2 innings and didn’t allow a baserunner.

For the Red Sox, it wasn’t the way the team wanted to start their 2009 postseason. They had only four hits while racking up three errors. David Ortiz, he of playoff heroics in the past, struck out three times in four at-bats.

In Game 2, the Angels could take a commanding lead in the series. However, the Red Sox should have a good chance to pull out the win due to Josh Beckett being on the mound. The Angeles will counter with Jered Weaver in Friday’s Game 2.

Torii Hunter - Los Angeles Angels (Image: Zuma Press)

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After Ryan Ludwick hit a single to put the St. Louis Cardinals up 1-0, the Dodgers got a two-run blast from Matt Kemp — and never trailed again. Los Angeles ended up winning the ballgame 5-3.

Chris Carpenter, who is likely to win the 2009 NL Cy Young Award, didn’t fair well. In five innings, he gave up nine hits, four walks and four earned runs. Randy Wolf, the starter for the Dodgers, wasn’t much better. In 3.2 innings, he gave up six hits, five walks and two earned runs.

Game 2 of this series is Thursday. In an intruiging pitching matchup, Adam Wainwright takes on Clayton Kershaw. Wainwright had one of the best seasons in all of baseball and Kershaw is regarded as one of the best pitching prospects in recent history.

Matt Kemp was the hero for the Dodgers (Image: Zuma Press)

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Here are our 2009 baseball playoff predictions:

AMERICAN LEAGUE

New York Yankees over Minnesota Twins in 4
Los Angeles Angels over Boston Red Sox in 5

Los Angeles Angels over New York Yankees in 6

NATIONAL LEAGUE

Philadelphia Phillies over Colorado Rockies in 5
St. Louis Cardinals over Los Angeles Dodgers in 3

Philadelphia Phillies over St. Louis Cardinals in 6

WORLD SERIES

Los Angeles Angels over Philadelphia Phillies in 7

The Angels have had to overcome many obstacles this season. That strength combined with a very potent lineup and a peaking pitching staff will give the Angels enough to be named the 2009 World Series champions.

The Phillies, on the other hand, will have come close to going back-to-back. However, their lack of a strong bullpen will come back to haunt the city of brotherly love.

Torii Hunter and the Angels will win it all (Image: Zuma Press)

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Trailing 2-1 heading into the bottom of the eighth inning, the Twins got hot. Jason Kubel hit a two-run single to give the Twins the lead. Then Michael Cuddyer put the game away with a three run homer as Minnesota beat Detroit by a final count of 6-2.

With the win, the Twins are 76-72 and just two games behind the 78-70 Tigers in the AL Central. The Tigers have lost three straight games and nine of their last 12 contests.

The AL Central race promises to be a fun one to watch down the stretch. On Sunday, the two teams play once again. Then between September 28th and October 1st, thhe wto teams play four more times. Get ready for a photo finish!

Michael Cuddyer and Joe Mauer Celebrate (Image: Zuma Press)

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