ROOKIE REVIVES REBELS

Rookie Alexei Ogando, lightning in a bottle, followed an improbable rookie season with a gutty effort that allowed host Philadelphia, down 2-0 in the playoffs, to avoid a sweep to Eastern champion Frostbite Falls!

Ogando didn't begin the year on Phillie's staff, and in spring training there had been speculation that the 28-year old former Cuban phenom would get a chance to work in the Rebels bullpen. Instead, the former subject of scandal became (along with Cliff Lee) the second-half pitcher of GM Ronald Melkonian's dreams, posting a 9-0 record in 10 starts along with a sub-2.00 ERA.

Ogando (1-0, 1.29) would pitch into the seventh in this outing, matched with lefty Cole Hamels, always a handful for opposing teams. Hamels was, in fact, brilliant. With two out in the first, Hamels would allow a two-out triple to Rebels rookie Dustin Ackley...but then he would strike out Adrian Gonzalez to end the threat. Torri Hunter singled to lead off the Rebels 2nd, but Hamels.....STRUCK OUT the next seven hitters in a row! In fact, Hamels would allow only three baserunners and fan a total of 10 Rebels through the first six frames.

The Frostbite lefty would also be helping himself to a lead. After Jose Reyes and Ricky Weeks opened the third with singles, Hamels sacrificed the pair over, where the Squirrels cashed in a run courtesy of a slowly-hit out to second by Jason Heyward. A 1-0 lead for the Squirrels with a dominant lefty on the hill, and their club up 2-0 in the Series...yet still there was a sense that a base hit could've broken things open. Ogando escaped further damage, and would require the next ten hitters after Heyward.

The Squirrels had their next big chance in the top of the seventh, when they bunched two hits in the inning against Ogando. But this was bookended by a double play from Longoria and a sharp lineout to a diving A-Rod at third for Drew Stubbs and, despite allowing some hard-hit balls, Ogando had kept things to a one-run contest.....which proved key. For, in the bottom of the seventh, the Rebels finally got to the dominant Hamels.

Adrian Gonzalez had a great at-bat, fouling off a pair of 2-2 pitches to draw a walk. Hunter singled sharply to put a pair of runners on, and fate intervened. With A-Rod at the plate, a sharp liner was hit into the hole to SS Jose Reyes. Reyes's flip to Rickie Weeks was on target to force Hunter, but Weeks' throw to first was wide of Albert Pujols: Gonzalez scored as the ball rolled around, and A-Rod ended up on second. With one down, the game was tied!

Andre Ethier, bad knee and all, then singled to send A-Rod to third with the winning run. With Matt Wieters at the plate, the infield played in a bit to deal with tying run. Wieters slapped one in the hole between first and second, but Pujols CUT OFF the ball with A-Rod scampering to the plate rather than let Weeks field it. The result? Pujols' only play was to force Ethier at second for the second out, A-Rod scoring the go-ahead run. Pinch-hitter Adam Jones flew out to end the inning, but the Rebels had put enough pressure on the Squirrels defense to take the lead:

......PHILADELPHIA 2, FROSTBITE FALLS 1!

Ogando had departed for the pinch-hitter, and the Squirrels would keep things close, with Chris Perez dominating in relief, fanning three in the bottom of the eighth. But the unheralded Rebels pen was up to the task of preserving the lead: Takashi Saito fanned pinch-hitter Michael Young to end the eighth, and J.J. Putz (the goat in Game 1) got both Pujols and Victor Martinez by way of the strikeout to finish things off, earning the save and keeping the surprising Central champs alive in the 2011 postseason.

A disenchanted spectator (and clearly in no way objective) was heard complaining to the baseball gods. "Ogando? 9-and-oh? Ethier, on a bad knee? Pujols, not coming through? Call Hollywood, I think I've got a script here!"