The Philadelphia Phillies are a better team, plain and simple.

It is a team built to win in the post-season.

The Dodgers, as good as they are, are not built as well for playoff series'.

There is plenty of talent in Los Angeles, and the Dodgers are going to be a threat for a long time, but the 2009 season, to me, was a failure. 95 wins means nothing if you don't even get one game closer to the World Series than you did the year before.

Now, it's time to address some issues and come back strong for the 2010 season.

What do the Dodgers need to do?

They need to do quite a few things, all of which probably won't be addressed.

We discuss.

Let's just hope the Dodgers fare better against the Phillies in 2009 than they did in 2008.

So instead of trying to say to much, I will understate it, say it was huge and move on.

In that 5-3 Dodgers win, the teams combined to leave 30 men on base, with the Dodgers leaving 16 of them. I am sure each team feels like they should have won.

Some things I'd like to see from the Dodgers in Game Two include coming up with big hits with runners on (they left the bases loaded three times) and I'd like to see Matt Kemp be more aggressive and take charge in centerfield. Two of the three Cardinal runs came on soft flyballs he should have caught.

Here are more Game Two thoughts...

In seven hours from now, the Los Angeles Dodgers will begin their quest to reach their first World Series since 1988. They will also look to move a step beyond last year's National League Championship Series appearance; and anything less will be a disappointment.

Last year, the Chicago Cubs were primed to be upset in the first round, and the Dodgers were playing good baseball at the right time. This time around, the Dodgers are not playing great baseball and they are facing a foe in the first round that they would rather not see.

The St. Louis Cardinals are a team built for the post-season, with two top of the line starters, a good closer and an absolute beast in the middle of the order.

The Cardinals also have ownership on the Dodgers, winning five of seven from them this year and in this decade they are just 23-42 against them. They have won just 11 of the last 39 games against them, and in St. Louis it is much worse. They are 4-16 there since 2003.

So have I illustrated the fact that the Dodgers have their hands full.

The Dodgers limped down the homestretch, going 2-8 before the final two games of the season that saw them lock up the NL West and home field advantage; something that was a given for much of the season.

I feel like the writing is on the wall, but the playoffs are a brand new season. We are often surprised at how teams can turn it on when the time comes.

Here are my thoughts on game one of this series.

Check out my responses and check out his site:

Also, in case I haven't mentioned it on here, base ball blogs from across the country have banded together to form the Baseball Bloggers Alliance. We're doing some very, very cool things which will include our own awards voting, which will happen soon. Check out our site:

Was that one of the most unemotional clinching celebrations you've ever seen? Me too and I have one thing to say about it: good.

If you would have told me back in June that the Dodgers would be fighting for the National League West on the last weekend of the season, I would have said you were crazy.

If you would have said it would be the Rockies who would be pushing them, I would have laughed in your face.

But that is exactly what the case is. The Dodgers let a nearly insurmountable lead get close a few times, but with a couple of weeks left, they seemed to have hit their stride again and were pulling away to win the West and to lock up the best record in the NL as well.

But what a difference eight games can make.

This team, the very team that is supposed to be a World Series contender right now, went 2-6 in their last eight games, which were matchups with the Nationals, Pirates and Padres.

Those three teams are a combined 192-285. 

In four of those six losses, the Dodgers scored exactly one run, and now it has come back to cost them. Not only do they have to exert themselves on the final weekend, but they run into a team that is streaking again. They also can't be content with winning just one and locking up the West. They need to win at least twice to lock up home field, and perhaps three times. They are a game ahead of Philadelphia, but own the tiebreak, and two games ahead of St. Louis, but the Cardinals own the tiebreak.

This team has made its bed, and now they have to lay in it.