TOP OF THE 8TH

The weirdest part about that double play was that Ryan Howard obviously thought he didn't catch the line drive. If he thought he had caught it in the air, he would have tagged first rather than thrown to second. Weird call by the umps.

Final line on Pedro:

6 innings, 6 hits, 2 walks, 3 earned runs, 8 strike outs. Definitely better than my prediction (5 1/3, 7 hits, 2 walks, 5 ER), but not that far off.

Meanwhile, Rivera is in to protect a 2 run lead. The last time Girardi brought him in for a 2 inning save was last Sunday against the Angels, also with a 2 run lead. He gave up a run in the 8th, but the Yanks blew the game open in the bottom of the inning.

Alright alright alright. Rollins works a one out walk and Victorino singles sharply to right. Future World Series MVP Chase Utley steps to the plate.

McCarver: "Now if you're Charlie Manuel, you almost have to send the runners. It's almost an ideal situation. Well, you're down by two runs; that's not ideal."

Amazingly enough, Manuel doesn't send the runners and Utley grounds into an inning-ending double play.