Talking Points

What we're talking about following the Phillies' win over the Dodgers:

-- Pat Burrell, a notoriously streaky hitter, could be getting hot at just the right time. After hitting a pair of homers in the Phillies' NLDS-clinching win at Milwaukee on Sunday, he belted a game-winning shot off Dodgers starter Derek Lowe into the left-centerfield seats in the sixth.

-- The Phillies have been waiting for second baseman Chase Utley to start contributing in the postseason. After punching a single up the middle in the first, he turned on a pitch from Derek Lowe in the sixth and knocked it out of the park for the game-tying homer.

-- Cole Hamels continues to show why he and Johan Santana of the Mets are the best lefthanded pitchers in the league. In the latest most important start of his young career, he held Los Angeles to two runs in seven innings while striking out eight.

-- The Phillies vowed they wouldn't let Manny Ramirez beat them. So why, with one out and a runner on second in the first inning, didn't they walk him with first base open? Instead, he hit a ball as far as you can hit it in Citizens Bank Park without getting a home run, a long drive that hit high above the 409-foot sign in dead center, just to the left of the shrubbery. He settled for a double and the Dodgers got the first run of the game.

-- The Phillies have beaten the Dodgers five straight at Citizens Bank Park since Aug. 22.

-- Game 2 of any postseason series often turns out to be the turning point. If the Phillies win today, they have a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series going into Dodger Stadium. If the Dodgers bounce back today, they'll have accomplished what they set out to do by splitting the first two games on the road.