The good news for the Dodgers is that they got Roy Halladay out of the way Monday night and won't have to face him again this season. However, their task Tuesday night isn't much easier as Cliff Lee starts for the Phillies. The Dodgers go from facing the best pitcher in the National League to facing one who is anywhere from third to eighth-best in the league depending on your metric of choice.
Lee is 11-7 with a 2.96 ERA this season, looking to make his third consecutive World Series. Lee is second to Halladay in the NL with a 5.22 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Ted Lilly, starting for the Dodgers tonight, is ninth in the league with a 3.48 K/BB ratio, but that is really the only way these two pitchers are comparable this season.
Lilly is 7-11 with a 4.86 ERA this season, and is on pace to become the first pitcher in Dodgers franchise history to allow 30 home runs and 30 stolen bases in the same season. Lilly has given up 24 homers, third in the NL, and 24 steals, second in the league, in his 23 starts this season.
Lilly and Lee matched up in Philadelphia on June 6, with the Phillies beating the Dodgers 3-1. Lee pitched seven scoreless innings, with 10 strikeouts, while Lilly took the loss by allowing two runs in six innings. That was the night Dee Gordon made his major league debut.
Tuesday night's 7:10 p.m. PDT game will be televised by KCAL. For more news and information on the Dodgers, or on Tuesday's game, be sure to read True Blue LA.