The San Francisco Giants beat the Atlanta Braves Monday night to advance to its first National League Championship Series since 2002. Outfielder Cody Ross had two RBI, including the game-winning single in the seventh inning.
The Giants have to be thrilled to have ousted Atlanta, having proved along the way that their excellent pitching staff is in top form this October. Now, however, Bruce Bochy’s crew must turn to take on a much fiercer offense and more worthy opponent than the depleted Braves: Charlie Manuel’s Philadelphia Phillies.
Philadelphia has won its division four straight times and are two-time defending National League champions. They have finished first or second in the NL in runs scored in all four of those seasons. To that potent resume, they added two right-handed aces for their starting pitching rotation this season-Roy Halladay and Roy Oswalt.
For the Giants to beat Philadelphia and have a chance to end their 52-year championship drought, much will need to go right. Specifically, here are five things the Giants need to do to win the NLCS.