For those scoring at home, Schilling is now 9-2 in postseason play. His .818 winning percentage is the best in playoff history among pitchers with 10 or more decisions. Those stats are a little skewed because guys like Bob Gibson and Sandy Koufax didn't have three rounds of playoffs in which to perform, but you simply cannot take anything away from Schilling on this one. Say what you want about the big lug (and I have), he wants the ball in the big games and he delivers.
He did it with the Phillies (MVP of the 1993 NLCS). He did it with the Diamondbacks (co-MVP of the 2001 World Series). He did it with the Red Sox in 2004 (3-1, including a couple of games you might remember in which he pitched with a bloody sock). And he did it yesterday, throwing autumnal zeroes again after a season in which he lost his fastball and won only nine games.
Taking nothing away from Schilling, one must acknowledge that the Angels were pathetic. Gary Matthews Jr. (knee) did not play in the series, Casey Kotchman was not in the lineup yesterday, Vladimir Guerrero was plagued by A-Rod disease and a sore shoulder, and Garret Anderson (conjunctivitis) finally had to sit after playing two-plus games with one eye. This meant Schilling was pitching to a lineup that featured a guy with no homers in 475 major league at-bats (Reggie Willits) batting cleanup. Small wonder Los Angeles hit .192 and scored only four runs in the series (the Los Angeles Times had certainly given up - its Angels coverage was on page 20 of yesterday's sports section).
Schilling has reinvented himself since he went on the shelf with shoulder problems this summer. Virtually overnight, he went from being Roger Clemens to being Greg Maddux. He did not win many games after he came back from his rehab, but he demonstrated an ability to get batters out and it served him well yesterday.
