2012 Major League Championship Series - Philadelphia vs. Denver

Game 1

Bonderman vs. Fatone.  This one is a great pitchers duel, with both pitchers hurling shutouts into the 5^th inning, with Fatone allowing only 1 hit.  In the bottom of the 5^th, Denver gets on the board with a 2-out 2-run single from Joey Renseller.  In the 7^th, Philadelphia cuts into the lead with a Paul White solo HR, only the 2^nd hit allowed by Fatone in the game.  But that was the final scoring and Fatone goes the distance with a 9-2-1-1-3-10 performance.  Final Score:  Denver 2 Philadelphia 1.

Game 2

Philadelphia gets Scott Bedard back from injury and he faces Derek Howe.  In the first, Denver takes a 1-0 lead on a DP grounder.  In the 6^th, a solo HR from Stan Marsh makes it 2-0 Denver.  In the 7^th, Philadelphia is able to rally and tie the game, on an RBI groundout and sacrifice fly after Favre and Willie Rivera led off the inning with a walk and double.  In the bottom of the 7^th, Butters Stotch hits a 2-run double down the right field line to give Denver the 4-2 lead.  In the 8^th, Denver adds an insurance run to make it 5-2.  In the 9^th, a trio of Denver pitchers (lefty-righty-lefty) each get their one out and Denver wins the game and takes a 2-0 series lead.

Game 3

Ruben Ramirez vs. Oswalt.  Philly takes a 1-0 lead in the first on a 2-out double by Willie Rivera.  Denver ties it in the 3^rd as Joey Renseller singles home Butters Stotch who had tripled.  The pitchers settle in and the game remains tied at 1 until the 8^th inning.  In the 8^th, Denver loads up the bases and scores on a Stan Marsh single to go up 2-1.  With the bases loaded and no one out, Philadelphia goes to the bullpen to relieve Oswalt, with the threat of one big inning potentially ending the series.  Geronimo Davis gets a strikeout and DP to end the inning and keep the game close.

Going to the bottom of the 9^th, Denver elects to stay with Ruben Ramirez, since the starting pitcher is the best option to close out the game.  With one out, Willie Rivera works a walk and is pinch run for by Emilio Mendoza.  Mendoza steals 2^nd and 3^rd.  Geoff Favre fails to bring the runner home on a grounder to short, as Gaedell is able to check the runner at 3^rd.  With 2 outs, Mendoza breaks for the plate and attempts the risky steal of home.  Denver is caught off guard, and the game is tied.  Ramirez gets the 3^rd out and we go to extra innings.

The bullpens hurl 4 consecutive scoreless frames in the 10^th through 13^th innings, with no team really threatening to score.  In the 14^th, Marc Crawford comes through in a big way, hitting the go-ahead solo HR to make it 3-2.  In the bottom of the 14^th, Ryan Webb pitches his 2^nd scoreless inning, and Denver wins to take a 3-0 series lead.  Ramirez goes 9-4-2-2-2-7, Jeff Beck goes 3-2-0-0-0-5, and Ryan Webb goes 2-0-0-0-1-4 for the win. 

Game 4

Clint Meyers vs. Casey Henderson.  Alex Maldonado makes it 1-0 Denver on an RBI double in the first.  In the 3^rd, Philadelphia takes a 2-1 lead on a 2-run HR from Paul White.  In the 6^th, Philadelphia extends the lead to 4-1 on a 2-run HR from Willie Rivera.  In the 7^th, Denver keeps it close with a George Rivera solo HR.  In the bottom of the 7^th, Philadelphia rallies to put the game out of reach with a 3 run inning highlighted by a Matt Bulger double off the centerfield wall to take a 7-2 lead.  That would be the final score as Philadelphia staves off elimination.  Unfortunately for Denver, in the 8^th inning, Joey Renseller is hit by a pitch and will miss the rest of the series.  This will be a huge loss for Denver since not only is he a gold glove 3B, he is hitting .409-.435-.705 in the post season.  He may be able to return if Denver reaches the World Series. 

Game 5

Bridges vs. Blackbuck.  With Joey Renseller injured, Denver elects to start Clyde Frogg at 3B, and he will occupy Renseller’s normal #2 spot in the batting order.  Philadelphia controls this game from the start, and wins 6-0 behind a great performance from Blackbuck 6-3-0-0-2-3.  Jimmy Taylor homers for Philadelphia.  The series is now much closer at 3-2, as we head back to Denver for Game 6.

Game 6

A rematch of Game 1 starters, Bonderman vs. Fatone.  Denver takes a 1-0 lead in the first when Alex Maldonado singles home Marc Crawford who had tripled.  Fatone dominates Philadelphia, allowing no runs and only 1 hit through 8 innings.  In the 9^th, the score is still 1-0, and Big Cheese decides to try to let his starting pitcher finish the game.  The first batter he faces, Willie Rivera, makes him pay by hitting a game tying HR to left.  Fatone gets the next 3 outs, and finishes the game with a line of 9-2-1-1-5-8 and gets the no decision.

The games goes to extra innings.  In the 10^th, Philadelphia is able to get the leadoff batter out.  The next two batters, Clyde Frogg and Marc Crawford, are able to work walks.  Philadelphia then brings in closer Hank Jenks to try to keep the season alive.  Alex Maldonado greets Jenks’ offering with a mighty blast, a 3 run HR to deep left.  The walk-off HR gives Denver a 4-1 win, and they take the series 4-2 and advance to the World Series for the 2^nd straight year.