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Roy Halladay threw a no-hitter in his first career postseason appearance to solidify a spot in the annals of Major League Baseball history Wednesday night.

The Phillies rode their ace to an easy 4-0 win over the Reds to take Game 1 of the NLDS in Philadelphia.

Incredibly, Halladay needed just over 100 pitches to shut down Joey Votto and Cincinnati’s bats.

The no-hitter was just the second ever in the Major League Baseball postseason and the first since Don Larsen’s epic perfect game in 1956 for the New York Yankees.

Here’s a look at the 10 best postseason pitching performances in baseball history.

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The New York Mets cleaned house Monday, officially parting ways with manager Jerry Manuel and general manager Omar Minaya.

After finishing the season with a disappointing 79-83 record, a whopping 18 games behind the first-place Phillies in the National League East, the writing was on the wall for both men.

Now, in need of new leadership at the top, the Mets suddenly face the prospect of rebuilding from the farm system all the way up to the major league level.

They also might be forced to resort to plan B, with a growing reputation of being one of the more unsettled organizations in all of baseball.

Here’s a look at 10 reasons the Mets will have a difficult time luring an experienced manager and general manager to begin picking up the pieces next season:

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The San Francisco Giants crept closer to a postseason berth, while the San Diego Padres suffered another heartbreaking loss Thursday night to move towards the brink of elimination.

Madison Bumgarner worked out of several jams and the Giants blasted three home runs en route to a 4-1 win over the Diamondbacks.

Meanwhile, offense was again the problem for the Padres, who tallied just three hits in the 1-0 loss to the Cubs.

Here’s a look at the latest news from the top teams heading into the postseason, and some very early predictions for each playoff team.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

The New York Yankees are sputtering down the stretch and could find themselves as the American League Wild Card team once the playoffs get underway.

A.J. Burnett struggled yet again as the Yankees suffered a 7-5 loss to the Blue Jays in Toronto Monday night.

New York’s magic number to clinch a playoff spot is still stuck at one following their fifth loss in six games.

Make no mistake, the reigning World Champions have big problems as the postseason rapidly approaches.

Here’s a look at 10 reasons why the Yankees won’t make it out of the ALDS.

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The Texas Rangers clinched the first division title in 11 years, and eagerly await the chance to gain more respect while competing against the beasts of the AL East.

Given the inexperience of the young Rangers and the health of Josh Hamilton, Texas could again find itself staring at an early exit from the postseason.

Here’s a look at why the AL West champions won’t be hanging around for too long this year.

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Stephen Strasburg’s torn ulnar collateral ligament has put his career on hold and done serious damage to the hopes of the Washington Nationals franchise.

Strasburg is expected to undergo Tommy John surgery to repair the ligament damage to his elbow, making a return to the mound next season very unlikely.

While Strasburg rehabs, the Nationals will have no choice but to cross their fingers and hope for the best when he returns.  Even before it begins, it appears that the 2011 season has already produced a “wait until next year” mantra.

The Nationals are hardly the first franchise to put its fortunes on hold while waiting for marquee players to recover.  In some cases, injured stars were never able to play again.  In other cases, the players returned but were never able to rediscover the pre-injury magic.

Here’s a look at 10 franchise-crippling injuries in the history of sports.

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For one reason or another, the Twins always seem to get the better of the White Sox in Minnesota. Last night, that reason was Jim Thome.

The slugger belted a two-run homer in the bottom of the 10th inning off reliever Matt Thornton to give the Twins a 7-6 win. More importantly, Thome’s walk-off gave the Twins a four-game lead in the division race over his former team.

Here’s a look at the 10 of the most important walk-off homers of the 2010 Major League Baseball season:

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Baseball Hall of Fame Voters are a notoriously fickle group who are difficult to understand. They often find ways to overlook players who are seemingly statistical locks for the Hall, most notably in the case of poor Bert Blyleven, who has appeared on the ballot 13 times without getting the nod.

When the rumor that Chipper Jones’ season was over became a reality, his status as a sure-fire Hall of Famer came into question.

Jones, who announced this would be his last season in June, is 38 years-old and might never be healthy enough to play again.

Ironically, the same injury that ended his rookie season in 1994 could end his career.

Will Chipper Jones follow in the footsteps of Ron Santo or Eddie Mathews?

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Stephen Strasburg’s name won’t be added to the long list of can’t-miss prospects who have missed.  Following his historic performance in his Major League debut Tuesday, the sports world is abuzz over his 99-mph heat and devastating slurve.

Strasburg’s dazzling debut was arguably the best moment in the history of the Washington Nationals.  It was a polarizing moment in the 2010 MLB season, which lacks compelling story lines even in mid-June.  It justified the national media’s hype and made the Nats’ a franchise worth covering.

Run away with those superlatives, Stephen Strasburg is here to say.

The Nationals have endured dwindling attendance in the last two seasons and needed something good to happen.  The fortunes of the franchise began to turn when the Nats managed to sign Strasburg out of San Diego State.  A packed Nationals Park Tuesday night was symbolic of how far the Amtrak of Major League Baseball has come. 

The Nationals are being smart about Strasburg, planning to limit him to around 160 innings this season, meaning that he will only be able to make around 12-15 starts at the Major League level before being shut down.  That should be enough to tease the fans and boost ticket sales heading into next season.

The next step is to surround Strasburg, third baseman Ryan Zimmerman, and slugger Adam Dunn with a few more pieces.  The Nationals are suddenly becoming an attractive destination for free agents.  Signing phenom Bryce Harper, the top overall pick in the 2010 amateur draft and another Scott Boras client, now becomes the team’s highest priority.

Major League Baseball and the national media is pulling for the Nationals to keep getting better.

Prior to Tuesday night, the biggest moment in the 2010 MLB season was undoubtedly a mistake.  Jim Joyce’s blown call prevented Detroit’s Armando Galarraga from registering one of the most unlikely perfect games in the history of baseball. 

Bud Selig’s legacy has been tarnished with mistakes, from looking the other way during steroid allegations to ending the 2002 All-Star game in a tie.  He opted not to overturn Joyce’s gaffe, opening the door for criticism.  Even with Galarraga on the bump for the first time since the infamous night, Strasburg’s dominated the headlines and overshadowed the perfect game that wasn’t.

Thanks to the national media, Strasburg’s debut created a new snapshot for the 2010 season.

Tampa Bay’s success is a source of enjoyment for baseball purists but a source of frustration for the media, which is hungry to focus on big-market teams first.  The post-steroid era has produced less scoring and more parity, enabling teams like the Reds and Athletics to hover around the top of the standings.  The media needed someone to generate excitement: someone like Stephen Strasburg.

Despite his incredible performance Tuesday, there are certainly a few cautionary tales to suggest that Strasburg could come back to earth. 

Kerry Wood was the last young phenom to throw a slurve.  He used the pitch heavily when he struck out 20 Astros as a rookie, but eventually stopped throwing it and has battled arm problems for much his career. 

The woeful Pirates are batting .236 as team this season and appeared to have given up by the fifth inning last night.

It clearly won’t always be that easy for Stephen Strasburg, but the sports world will be watching for years and years to come.

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