Suddenly, it's a must-win game for the Phillies

Chase Utley struck out four times Wednesday and was part of an 0-for-15 showing by the Phillies' top four hitters. Jim McIsaac/Getty Images

World Series Coverage   Monday John Donovan: Rox, Sox built to last Albert Chen: Ellsbury an unlikely hero Joe Sheehan: Scenes, notes from clincher Red Sox celebrate World Series victory Sunday Sox clip Rockies 4-3 to win World Series John Donovan's Report Card for Game 4 Jon Heyman's 15 Greatest Mr. Octobers Lowell takes home Series MVP honors Dynasty in the making for Red Sox? Clock strikes midnight for Rockies' ride Time.com: Red Sox are the new Yankees Saturday Red Sox down Rockies 10-5, take 3-0 lead John Donovan's Report Card for Game 3 Tom Verducci: The Sox are superior John Donovan: The Coors Field factor Jon Heyman: Four keys to Game 3 Friday Melissa Segura: Corpas gets his wish John Donovan: Rockies' lumber slumber Jon Heyman: How the Sox got Beckett Joe Sheehan: Electric night at Fenway Thursday Schilling, bullpen shut down Rockies 2-1 John Donovan's Report Card for Game 2 Tom Verducci's five cuts for Thursday Albert Chen on the Red Sox's bullpen John Donovan: Rockies turn to a rookie Joe Sheehan: Postseason drama lacking Tale of the Tape: Rockies vs. Red Sox World Series Fungoes Joe Lemire on Rockies-Red Sox Schedule/Box Scores Game 1: Red Sox 13, Rockies 1 Game 2: Red Sox 2, Rockies 1 Game 3: Red Sox 10, Rockies 5 Game 4: Red Sox 4, Rockies 3

It's still a little early to get into postseason trends. I mean one day -- all of three games -- is a pretty small sample size of an already tiny sample.

But if you insist, Day One of the 2007 postseason can best be summed up this way: Pretty good pitching. A lot of bad-looking swings from guys who aren't supposed to look that bad. And three low-scoring games.

Sure, you can say it was the pitching. Theoretically, at least, each of the six teams that played Wednesday sent its ace to the mound. And, for the most part, all of them pitched very well. That said, we have to take a look at the losers, too, and what they didn't do.

• The Angels didn't manage an extra-base hit against Josh Beckett. They nicked him for four singles, two of them by DH Vladimir Guerrero.

• The high-scoring Phillies got only four hits off the Rockies. And the top four hitters in the lineup went a galling 0-for-15.

• The Cubs' big swingers -- Aramis Ramirez, Derrek Lee and Alfonso Soriano -- went 1-for-13, with a Lee single the only hit. The only extra-base hit of the night for the Cubs, in fact, was a double by their starter, Carlos Zambrano.

Great pitching by the aces? Or slow starts, maybe a little playoff nerves, by the hitters?

Discuss. We'll get back to you later. In the meantime, here's a look at the three divisional series games Thursday ...

Rockies at Phillies, 3 p.m. ET

LH Franklin Morales (3-2, 3.43 ERA) vs. RH Kyle Kendrick (10-4, 3.87)

Yeah, well, so much for that high-scoring prediction, eh? A pair of very good pitchers (Jeff Francis was a little better than the Phils' Cole Hamels), coupled with some nasty shadows that came from a mid-afternoon start time at Citizens Bank Park, took the bats right out of the hands of these big lineups in Game 1, a 4-2 Rockies win. Next time someone complains that postseason games start too late, remind them of that one.

So, same thing in Game 2? Well, not to sound all wishy-washy but ... yeah, could be. The start time is the same, so the shadows, if it's sunny, will be just as bad. Still, you have to figure that the lineups have a bit of an edge on the young starters in this one. Morales and Kendrick, between them, have 28 career starts. None in the postseason. They're capable, of course, or they wouldn't be here. But you have to figure, too, that the top of the Phillies' lineup has some making up to do after that Game 1 debacle. Jimmy Rollins, Shane Victorino, Chase Utley and Ryan Howard went a combined 0-for-15. Utley struck out four times.

This is, of course, a desperate situation for the Phillies, who can't afford to go to Denver having to win two games. I will say this: They could be in worse shape. Kendrick is clearly their No. 2 pitcher. He led all National League rookies in wins. He's not going to go deep into a game, but 13 of his 20 starts were quality starts. If the Phils hit like they're supposed to hit, Kendrick should, at the very least, keep them in it.

Look out for: Man, is Colorado's Brian Fuentes throwing the ball well lately. Not a question. A fact. The former closer, now setting up for Manny Corpas, hasn't been in a game in the ninth inning since Aug. 24. And his new role fits this lefty extremely well. In his past 18 appearances, not including Game 1, he has struck out 18 in 18 2/3 innings with a 1.45 ERA. That slider is a killer, and when he can start it off the plate to righties and sneak it over the outside corner, it's practically unhittable.

Yankees at Indians, 6:30 p.m. ET

RH Chien-Ming Wang (19-7, 3.70) vs. LH C.C. Sabathia (19-7, 3.21)

If anyone had any doubts about who the Yankees' ace is these days ... well, nobody should have those doubts. Haven't you been paying attention? After back-to-back seasons with 19 wins -- and a very solid last eight starts (6-1, 2.67) -- Wang was the easy choice for manager Joe Torre in Game 1. Wang doesn't have to be great, not with that Yankees lineup. All he has to do is be his steady self. That should be at least close to enough.

Sabathia, through some weird cosmic scheduling quirk, hasn't faced the Yankees since 2004, and he's a lot different now than he was then. The thing that pops out at you about C.C. -- other than the fact the guy has a set of legs that make some redwoods look like David Eckstein -- is that he simply doesn't walk anyone. Sabathia, not Eckstein. The man threw 38 innings in September and walked only six batters. He struck out 33. As walks-to-strikeout ratios go, that's pretty impressive.

Of course, against the Yankees' lineup, throwing strikes is paramount. The wild-card Yanks love to wear pitchers down by making them throw a lot of pitches. (They were third in the league in walks.) Sabathia, clearly, doesn't want to play that game. Something has to give.

Look out for: One of the most disappointing parts of the Indians' season -- nitpicking here, considering they did win the American League Central rather handily -- was the relatively down year by DH Travis Hafner. His slugging percentage dropped more than 200 points. His on-base percentage plunged by more than 50 points. But September was his best month since April -- he had five home runs and eight doubles last month, accounting for a .551 slugging percentage, his best of the year. If he's breaking out, finally, the Yankees are in deep trouble.

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