LOS ANGELES - Two days earlier Joe Torre sat in a small room in the basement of Dodger Stadium and talked about an important lesson he had learned from Don Zimmer when Zim was one of his Yankees coaches.
Basically, it was that you have to be much less patient with your starting pitcher in the playoffs than you would be in the regular season. The games are too important. There are plenty of open dates. So it's best to have a quick hook and go to the bullpen early and often if necessary.
Which makes what Torre did - or didn't - do in Game 1 of the National League Championship Series last night so curious.
Starter Clayton Kershaw was sailing along with a one-hit shutout. There were two outs in the fourth when the 21-year-old lefthander threw a pretty darn good 3-2 pitch to Ryan Howard. He thought it was a strike. The television graphic indicated it was a strike. But home-plate umpire Randy Marsh called it a ball.
It was all downhill for Kershaw after that.
He got out of the fourth when Jayson Werth smoked a line drive to left that was caught on the warning track. Then the first four batters he faced in the fifth reached base: single by Raul Ibanez, walk to Pedro Feliz, wild pitch, home run by Carlos Ruiz, walk to pitcher Cole Hamels.
Still, Torre stuck with Kershaw.
Jimmy Rollins grounded into a fielder's choice. Shane Victorino struck out on another wild pitch; Rollins advanced on the play. Kershaw uncorked his third wild pitch, an LCS record for an inning.
Still, Torre didn't move. "After the home run, he got a groundball and a strikeout," Torre explained. "It looked like he'd reined it in a little bit. Unfortunately, it got away from him quickly after that."
Chase Utley walked. Ryan Howard hit a booming double to right, driving in the fourth and fifth runs of the inning. Finally Torre trudged to the mound and brought Ramon Troncoso in to relieve Kershaw.
"[Kershaw] was the starting pitcher in Game 1 and that's what I wanted to do," Torre said. "I've got a quality lefthander on the mound. This young man, I trust him a great deal. It just didn't work out."
Zimmer could not be reached for comment.
One of the Phillies' strengths this season has been defense. They made just 76 errors all season. But a fielding mistake allowed the Dodgers to get right back into the game in the bottom of the fifth.
