Lincecum Outduels Halladay, Giants Take 1-0 Lead
PHILADELPHIA (CBS/AP) - Tim Lincecum shrugged off his pirouette at the plate, ignored the derisive whistles he heard in the batter's box and did his thing on the mound -- where he's most comfortable.
Lincecum outdueled Roy Halladay, Cody Ross hit a pair of solo homers and the San Francisco Giants beat the Philadelphia Phillies 4-3 in Game 1 of the NL championship series Saturday night.
In a mega-hyped matchup between marquee pitchers, neither starter came close to matching his sensational postseason debut last week. Both gave up homers to the No. 8 hitters.
"It's tons of confidence, but I think it's more about winning Game 1 for us, setting the pace," Lincecum said.
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Halladay's bid for a second straight no-hitter lasted until Ross connected with one out in the third.
"It was just enough to squeak by for us," Lincecum said.
Lincecum, who tossed a two-hitter, gave up three runs on homers to Jayson Werth and Carlos Ruiz in seven innings.
But the Freak got the big outs when he needed them, and the Giants earned their fourth one-run win in the playoffs. The two-time NL champion Phillies lost their first series opener since getting swept by Colorado in 2007.
"Lincecum, he hung in there and he battled and he pitched pretty good," Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said.
Game 2 is Sunday night. Jonathan Sanchez tries to send the Giants back to San Francisco just two wins from their first World Series appearance since 2002. Roy Oswalt goes for the Phillies.
Halladay threw the second no-hitter in postseason history in a 4-0 win over Cincinnati in the opener of the division series. The only runner he allowed was a fifth-inning walk to Jay Bruce.
Pitching on nine days' rest, Halladay clearly didn't have the same, dominant stuff. He allowed four runs and eight hits in seven innings.
A day after Halladay's gem, Lincecum had 14 strikeouts in San Francisco's 1-0 win over Atlanta. He gave up six hits and struck out eight against the Phillies.
Lincecum, the reigning two-time NL Cy Young Award winner, had some adventures with a bat in his hands, though.
The notoriously tough Philly fans came up with a unique way to mock Lincecum instead of the usual boos. They serenaded him with whistles when he batted in the fifth and seventh, presumably poking fun at his long, shaggy hair.
His first time up, Lincecum struck out, spinning on one leg after swinging at a slow curve.
Lincecum gave way to Javier Lopez, who got two outs in the eighth. All-Star closer Brian Wilson finished with a four-out save.
The Phillies led the majors in wins (97) for the first time in franchise history, captured their fourth straight division title and are trying to become the first NL team in 66 years to win three straight pennants.
The Giants are seeking their first World Series title since moving from New York in 1958.
Ross, a Phillies nemesis, ripped a 2-0 pitch to the seats in left to give the Giants a 2-1 lead in the fifth. He was 3 for 16 off Halladay before taking him deep his first two at-bats.
"It's just awesome to be in this situation right now, to be able to come here and help this team where it wanted to be," Ross said.
The Giants got two key hits with two outs in the sixth to increase the advantage to 4-1. Halladay thought he struck out Pat Burrell to end the inning and walked off the mound after an 0-2 pitch only to return because plate umpire Derryl Cousins called it a ball. Burrell hit an RBI double on the next pitch -- left fielder Raul Ibanez made a leaping attempt in front of the wall and the ball bounced out of his glove.
Juan Uribe followed with an RBI single up the middle, scoring pinch-runner Nate Schierholtz to give the Giants a three-run cushion.
The Phillies quickly answered in the bottom half. Chase Utley hustled out an infield single and Werth hit a two-run shot to right-center to cut it to 4-3.
Halladay retired the first seven batters before Ross drove a fastball into the seats in left-center. Players in the Giants' dugout jumped out of their seats and a fired-up Burrell smacked the railing as Ross rounded the bases.
Ruiz led off the bottom half with an opposite-field shot to right to tie it up at 1. Halladay followed with a single, getting his second postseason hit before giving up two. After Shane Victorino bounced into a double play, Placido Polanco lined a double.
Lincecum then walked Utley and drew a visit from manager Bruce Bochy after gesturing and yelling at Cousins. Bochy's pep talk worked. Lincecum struck out Ryan Howard swinging at a slider after a passed ball put runners at second and third.
The Phillies wasted a chance in the second when Howard, the only player to have three homers off Lincecum, lined a double to left-center to start the inning. But Lincecum fanned Werth. Jimmy Rollins popped out two pitches after Cousins mistakenly rung him up on strike two. Ibanez flied out to center to strand Howard.
Philadelphia eliminated the Reds in three games for its first postseason sweep in round one. The Giants beat the Braves in four games -- all decided by one run.
Halladay lived up to giant expectations in his first season in Philadelphia after 12 years with Toronto. The 33-year-old right-hander finished 21-10 with a 2.44 ERA. He tied CC Sabathia for most wins and led the majors in complete games (nine), shutouts (four) and innings (250 2-3).
Halladay threw a perfect game in May, made his seventh All-Star game and is the leading candidate to win his second Cy Young.
He was acquired from the Blue Jays on the same day the Phillies traded Cliff Lee to Seattle. Lee is 6-0 in the postseason, including 4-0 for the Phillies last year, heading into his start for Texas against the New York Yankees in Game 3 of the ALCS on Monday night.
Lincecum had an up-and-down year after dominating in his first two full seasons. The 26-year-old righty had a career-worst five-start losing streak in August, but rebounded nicely and finished 16-10 with a 3.43 ERA.
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