The Phillies didnt see Clayton Kershaw last season, when he went 21-5 with a 2.88 ERA. He collected 92 percent of the first place votes in winning the NL Cy Young. Roy Halladay finished second and Cliff Lee third.
The Phils last faced Kershaw in September 2010, when he gave up homers to Jimmy Rollins and Shane Victorino in the first and second innings and lost to Roy Oswalt, 5-1.
The Phils have actually won their last five meetings with Kershaw. Hes 0-4 with a 5.33 ERA in that span.
So most Phillies fans who dont get to watch west coast games through the MLB Extra Innings Package or MLB.TV dont know quite how good Kershaw has become. The only issue there ever was was control, and hes mastered it.
Kershaw was the seventh overall pick in the 2006 draft. Evan Longoria went No. 3 that year. The Phillies took Kyle Drabek 18th. He dominated the minors, striking out 276 batters in 220 innings. But he walked 91, or 3.7 per nine innings.
Kershaw had a 3.36 ERA through his first two years in the majors, but walked 52 batters in 108 innings his first year and 91 in 171 innings the second. The major sign of promise in 2009, his second season, was his leading the National League in fewest hits per nine innings for a starting pitcher.
His ability to limit hits has stuck around. The strikeouts have remained steady. But the walks-per-nine rate of 4.6? Its down to 2.1 the last two seasons. Thats control similar to, or actually slightly better than, Matt Cain.
MLB
Monday could be rough. The Phillies have never seen the new Kershaw. And already own a line against him that begs to normalize.
A 6-3 southpaw with a mid-90s fastball and a uniquely knee-buckling breaking ball, managers dont dare bat their lefties against Kershaw. Hes seen a righthanded batter in more than 85 percent of his total plate appearances this season. And those righties are hitting .205 with a .569 OPS. (Freddy Galvis has a .625 OPS.)
Expect to see John Mayberry in left field and Ty Wigginton at first. But loading the lineup with righties hasnt worked for the other 11 teams Kershaws faced.
E-mail Corey Seidman at cseidman@comcastsportsnet.com