Series Wrapup

Story

The 2010 National League season witnessed the Cincinnati Reds capture their first division title in 15 years, the continued domination of the Philadelphia Phillies in the East, and the surprising rise to the top of the baseball world by the pitching-rich San Francisco Giants.

After finishing fourth in the N.L. Central the previous year with a record of 78-84, the Cincinnati Reds claimed their first division title since 1995 by compiling a record of 91-71 that placed them five games ahead of the runner-up St. Louis Cardinals in the final standings.  Cincinnati’s first-place finish coincided with the emergence of 26-year-old first baseman Joey Votto as one of the senior circuit’s most dynamic hitters.  Votto placed among the league-leaders with 37 home runs, 113 runs batted in, 106 runs scored, and a .324 batting average, and he topped the circuit with a .424 on-base percentage and a .600 slugging average.  Votto’s outstanding play earned him N.L. MVP honors.

Although the Cardinals failed to earn a return-trip to the postseason, they received another exceptional performance from Albert Pujols.  The slugging first baseman batted .312 and led the league with 42 homers, 118 runs batted in, and 115 runs scored, en route to earning a second-place finish to Votto in the MVP balloting.

While the Reds won their division for the first time in 15 years, the Philadelphia Phillies claimed the N.L. East title for the fourth consecutive time.  The Phillies finished the regular season with a league-best record of 97-65, six games ahead of the runner-up Atlanta Braves, who advanced to the playoffs as the senior circuit’s wild-card entry.  

Clearly the National League’s strongest team over the course of the regular season, the Phillies boasted one of the circuit’s top offenses and a solid pitching staff that included the league’s best pitcher.  In his first year in the senior circuit, Roy Halladay won the Cy Young Award by compiling a 2.44 ERA, striking out 219 batters, and leading all N.L. hurlers with 21 wins, nine complete games, four shutouts, and 251 innings pitched.  Cole Hamels also pitched effectively for the Phillies, finishing second on the club with 12 wins, a 3.06 ERA, 211 strikeouts, and 209 innings pitched.  Roy Oswalt gave Philadelphia a third solid starter after he joined the team during the season’s second half, going 7-1 with a 1.74 ERA in his 12 starts.

Still, the Phillies’ greatest strength remained their offense, which finished second in the league with 772 runs scored.  Although Ryan Howard and Chase Utley both experienced slightly subpar seasons, they managed to post fairly impressive numbers.  Howard finished the year with 31 homers, 108 runs batted in, and a .276 batting average.  Utley batted .275, hit 16 homers, and scored 75 times, in only 115 games.  Shane Victorino and Jayson Werth joined Howard and Utley as the team’s top offensive threats.  Victorino hit 18 homers, scored 84 runs, and stole 34 bases.  Werth batted .296, finished second on the club with 27 home runs and 85 runs batted in, and led the team with 106 runs scored.

The National League’s most surprising team ended up being the San Francisco Giants, who finished the year strong to edge out the San Diego Padres for the Western Division title by two games.  The Giants concluded the campaign with a record of 92-70, two games ahead of the Padres, and nine games in front of the third-place Colorado Rockies, who featured three of the league’s top performers.  Ubaldo Jimenez placed among the league leaders with a record of 19-8, a 2.88 ERA, and 214 strikeouts.  Shortstop Troy Tulowitzki batted .315, hit 27 homers, and drove in 95 runs.  In just his first full season, outfielder Carlos Gonzalez established himself as one of the senior circuit’s finest all-around players by hitting 34 home runs, knocking in 117 runs, scoring 111 others, stealing 26 bases, and leading the league with a .336 batting average, 197 hits, and 351 total bases.

However, the Giants’ superior pitching made them the division’s strongest team.  Although the Giants finished just ninth in the league in runs scored, they posted a team ERA of 3.36 that placed them first in the league rankings.  Tim Lincecum remained the staff ace, leading the team with 16 victories and 231 strikeouts.  Matt Cain and Jonathan Sanchez joined Lincecum to give the Giants a formidable “Big Three” at the top of their starting rotation.  Cain won 13 games, compiled a 3.14 ERA, struck out 177 batters, and led the team with four complete games and 223 innings pitched.  Sanchez also posted 13 victories, and he struck out 205 batters and led the starters with a 3.07 ERA.  Brian Wilson anchored San Francisco’s bullpen, leading the league with 48 saves, compiling a 1.81 ERA, and striking out 93 batters in 75 innings of work.

Veteran first baseman Aubrey Huff and N.L. Rookie of the Year catcher Buster Posey paced San Francisco’s rather mediocre offense.  Huff batted .290 and led the club with 26 home runs, 86 runs batted in, and 100 runs scored.  Posey batted .305, hit 18 homers, and drove in 67 runs, in only
108 games.

The Giants used their outstanding pitching to defeat the Braves in four games in their NLDS matchup, posting all three of their victories by a single run, compiling a team ERA of 1.66, and holding Atlanta to a team batting average of just .175.  Meanwhile, the Phillies dominated Cincinnati in the other Division Series, sweeping the Reds in three straight games and outscoring them by a combined margin of 13-4.  Game One of the Series featured just the second no-hitter in postseason history, as Roy Halladay allowed only one walk during a 4-0 Philadelphia victory.  

After rolling over Cincinnati, the Phillies entered their NLCS matchup with the Giants fully expecting to emerge victorious and subsequently represent the senior circuit in the World Series for the third straight year.  However, San Francisco stunned Philadelphia in six games, with newly-acquired utility outfielder Cody Ross earning NLCS MVP honors by batting .350, hitting three homers, and driving in five runs.

The Giants continued their roll against the Texas Rangers in the World Series, defeating their American League counterparts in five games.  After relying heavily on their outstanding pitching staff throughout the year, the Giants broke out the heavy lumber in the first two contests, scoring a total of 20 runs, to grab a 2-0 lead in the Fall Classic.  The Rangers took Game Three, but the Giants returned to their familiar formula to post 4-0 and 3-1 wins in the final two contests.  Along the way, they defeated Cliff Lee twice, bringing to an end the ace left-hander’s postseason dominance.  After being injured most of the year, Giants shortstop Edgar Renteria earned Series MVP honors by batting .412, hitting two homers, driving in six runs, and scoring six others.

Other outstanding performers, notable events, and points of interest from around the league follow:

• January 4 – Randy Johnson announced his retirement.  He ended his career with 303 wins and second only to Nolan Ryan on the all-time strikeouts list.

• February 11 - Tom Glavine moved into the front office of the Atlanta Braves after 22 seasons and 305 victories.

• April 17 - Colorado’s Ubaldo Jimenez threw a 4-0 no-hitter against the Atlanta Braves.

• May 29 – Philadelphia’s Roy Halladay threw the 20th perfect game in major league history – a 1-0 win over the Florida Marlins.

• September 8 - Milwaukee’s Trevor Hoffman became the first pitcher to record 600 saves.

• October 6 – Roy Halladay threw the second no-hitter in postseason history in Game One of Philadelphia’s Division Series against the Cincinnati Reds.  The Phillies won Halladay’s first postseason start by a score of 4-0, with the ace right-hander allowing only one base on balls.

• The National League earned home-field advantage in the World Series by defeating the American League 3-1 in the All-Star Game.  Atlanta catcher Brian McCann earned game MVP honors by hitting a three-run double with two outs in the seventh inning for the senior circuit’s only runs.

• Bobby Cox retired as manager of the Braves following the team’s four-game loss to the Giants in the NLDS.  He ended his managerial career with 2,504 wins, placing him fourth on the all-time list.

• Joe Torre retired as skipper of the Dodgers, turning over the managerial reins to longtime apprentice Don Mattingly.  Torre’s teams made the playoffs in 13 of his final 15 seasons as manager, including 11 in a row with the Yankees from 1996 to 2006.

• Lou Piniella retired as manager of the Cubs, leaving the game after almost 50 years as a player and manager to care for his ailing mother.

• By finishing the season with 42 home runs, Albert Pujols became the first player in major league history to surpass the 30-homer mark in each of his first 10 seasons.

Seasons of the National League

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