Lowe and Hamels to face off in NL championship series

NEW YORK: The Los Angeles Dodgers will send sinkerballer Derek Lowe to the mound to oppose Phillies left-hander Cole Hamels when the National League Championship Series gets underway in Philadelphia on Thursday. Lowe was 15-11 with a 3.24 earned run average for the Dodgers and manager Joe Torre, who steered Los Angeles to the postseason in his first season at the helm after taking the New York Yankees to the playoffs 12 years in a row. Hamels was virtually identical to Lowe this season with a 15-10 mark and a 3.09 ERA. The other half of baseball's final four opens Friday when the young Tampa Bay Rays host 2007 World Series champions Boston Red Sox in the American League best-of-seven playoffs. The pitching-strong Dodgers allowed the second fewest runs in the league and fewest homers and they must be on their game to contain... [read full story]