Playoff Pulse: And the Beat Goes Dead?

Playoff Pulse is our morning rundown of the night that was and the night that will be during the MLB postseason.

Looking Forward ...

Bask in the baseball now, because if the Yankees beat the Angels Thursday night, there isn't going to be much to keep us busy until the World Series begins.

In the last three LCS rounds, one of the two series has either gone four or five games. The other half -- the 2006 NLCS and the 2007 and 2008 ALCS -- went the distance. That partially masked the big problem with Major League Baseball's ever-elongating postseason schedule, but if the Yankees wrap up their spot in the World Series, it'll be impossible to ignore.

We'll have five whole off days to think about what we're missing.

It's hard to argue with the changes MLB has made for the last, oh, decade and a half, at least when you look at the bottom line. But five days of hype? That doesn't help -- even if it's New York and Philly and all the fun that comes with that pairing. Baseball is built on its daily rhythm, one of the sport's most defining characteristics. If the Yankees eliminate the Angels, the beat will be lost.

In Their Own Words
"That's my home. ... That's where I live. I hope you understand that. ... [Play] the Yankees? You'll find out. Get your ticket." -- Pedro Martinez on a potential World Series meeting between the Phillies and Yankees
By the Numbers
1 The number of teams in playoff history to allow four home runs, hit three batsmen and throw a wild pitch all in the same game, as the Dodgers did in losing Game 5.
More From FanHouse
Price: Phils Ready for It All Mariotti: Heart of a Champion

Looking Back ...

So how about that Brad Lidge guy anyway? He went 0-8 and led the league in blown saves during the regular season, and as he kept repeating how the postseason was a fresh start -- how it was nice to see a 0.00 in the ERA column next to his name -- it all sounded a little bit hollow.

How was a man who struggled so much in the regular season going to suddenly turn it on pitching on the game's grandest stage?

There's still three zeroes next to his name and the Phillies are headed for the World Series, an achievement that seems even more impressive considering how many blown saves we've seen through the first two rounds.

Scout's Eye View ...

Good pitching will win you plenty of games, unless you are playing the Philadelphia Phillies that is. And that is the difference between a a good lineup and a fantastic lineup. It takes more than decent performances on the mound to shut down them down. They make adjustments and leave almost no room for mistakes over the plate. Take a look at the swings the Philadelphia hitters take throughout a game. Few teams take as few poor swings as they do. There are no wasted cuts and it seems like when that eventual mistake comes from the pitcher, they are always able to put their A swing on it.

That approach is a testament to a team-wide offensive philosophy and it's an underrated aspect of their offense. Clubs like the Yankees and Red Sox are praised for their patience, but the Phillies may strike the best balance of patience and aggression. Hitters like Jayson Werth and Shane Victorino have proved time and time again this October that they will not expand the zone, but also will not let that one mistake pitch get by. Whichever pitching staff gets the task of trying to stop this lineup is going to need to establish the fastball on the inside part of the plate early on; this is a lineup of hitters that can drive the ball to the opposite field as well as anyone in baseball.

Unified approach is perhaps the best phrase to use to describe how they go about their business. As a whole they seem to be on the same page on how to attack the opposing pitcher on a nightly basis, and they can likely thank an elite group of advanced scouts for that. There are no surprises when they step in the box, and any pitcher that intends to stop them will need to equally prepared.

-- Frankie Piliere

Wednesday's Tale of the Tape ...

Yankees (A.J. Burnett) at Angels (John Lackey), 7:57 PM ET: If you hadn't picked up on it already, Burnett can be dominant and he can be prone to stretches of inconsistency and ineffectiveness. His start was a distant memory by the time the Yankees walked off with a win in Game 2, but he was overpowering in his lone start in Anaheim this year, striking out 11 in 5 2/3 innings of work. Lackey made one good start against the Yankees during the regular season, but he wasn't crisp at the end of last week. His home and road ERAs were virtually identical, but opponents slugged 64 points higher against him in Anaheim than they did on the road, so he'll have to be careful with the potent New York lineup.