Major League Baseball

Stellar staffs in top fall clashes

Published Oct. 16, 2010 10:58 a.m. ET

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It's not so unusual to see an excellent pitching rotation in baseball's postseason, but it's rare that two such rotations go head-to-head, as we'll see in the Giants-Phillies series opening tonight.

From a statistical perspective, historically, the Giants don't have a great rotation. Given that only Tim Lincecum can boast an elite track record, they're not even close. But they are feared, and full of promise, to the point where some feel their four-man rotation - should we see Madison Bumgarner and/or Joe Blanton in Game 4 - is superior to the vaunted Phillies'.

There's so much talk these days about pitchers coming back on three days' rest, as if it's a wild and dangerous risk - and in many cases, it is. But keep in mind that from the game's inception in the mid-19th century through the 1970s, pitchers routinely worked on three days' rest, or even two days in an emergency. That will be the case in most of the great rotation matchups listed here, covering the past 50 years. For most of the teams - even in an exhaustive series going the full seven games - a fourth starter never entered the picture.

The Dodgers with Sandy Koufax 25-5, 1.88, Johnny Podres 14-12, 3.54 and Don Drysdale 19-17, 2.63 against the Yankees with Whitey Ford 24-7, 2.74, Al Downing 13-5, 2.56 and Jim Bouton 21-7, 2.53. The Dodgers swept the Series, and Bouton's 1-0 loss to Drysdale was a classic.

Baltimore with Mike Cuellar 23-11, 2.38, Dave McNally 20-7, 3.22 and Jim Palmer 16-4, 2.34 against the Mets with Tom Seaver 25-7, 2.21, Jerry Koosman 17-9, 2.28 and Gary Gentry 13-12, 3.43 - with a 22-year-old kid named Nolan Ryan in the bullpen. The Mets won in five.

as such best-of-five series were known then

This was the year Baltimore had four 20-game winners in its rotation: Palmer, Cuellar, McNally and Pat Dobson. The latter didn't figure in the Orioles' three-game sweep of Oakland, and though the A's had Vida Blue 24-8, 1.82 and Catfish Hunter 21-11, 2.96, they didn't yet have Ken Holtzman. Their third-game starter was Diego Segui 10-8, 3.14.

The A's with Blue 20-9, 3.28, Hunter 21-5, 3.34 and Holtzman 21-13, 2.97 against Baltimore with Palmer 22-9, 2.40, Cuellar 18-13, 3.27 and McNally 17-17, 3.21. The Orioles started Doyle Alexander in the fateful Game 5, and Oakland clinched the series.

Oakland against the Mets with Seaver 19-10, 2.08, Jon Matlack 14-16, 3.20 and Jerry Koosman 14-15, 2.84. A's in seven.

Atlanta with Tom Glavine 15-10, 2.98, Greg Maddux 15-11, 2.72, John Smoltz 24-8, 2.94 and Denny Neagle 16-9, 3.50, including his stats with Pittsburgh. Pitted against the Yankees with Andy Pettitte 21-8, 3.87, David Cone 7-2, 2.88, Jimmy Key 12-11, 4.68 and Kenny Rogers 12-8, 4.68. Yankees in six.

Atlanta with Glavine 14-11, 4.12 , Maddux 19-9, 3.57, Smoltz 11-8, 3.19 and Kevin Millwood 18-7, 2.68 against the Yankees with Roger Clemens 14-10, 4.60, Cone 12-9, 3.44, Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez 17-9, 4.12 and Pettitte 14-11, 4.70. The Yankees swept.

The Yankees with Clemens 20-3, 3.51, Pettitte 15-10, 3.99, Mike Mussina 17-11, 3.15 and Hernandez 4-7, 4.85 against the A's with Mark Mulder 21-8, 3.45, Tim Hudson 18-9, 3.37, Barry Zito 17-8, 3.49 and Cory Lidle 13-6, 3.59, whose Game 4 loss was pivotal. The Yanks won in five.

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