in the center ring

Roy Oswalt goes to the mound today for Philadelphia in a potential National League Division Series clincher at St. Louis. Though Oswalt’s 2011 season was a bit shaky, he has been a horse in the postseason over his career. The ex-Holmes Community College standout from Weir is 5-1 with a 3.39 ERA in 12 playoff appearances; the one defeat came in relief (last year in the Phillies’ NLCS loss to San Francisco). Among Oswalt’s postseason W’s is a victory over St. Louis in Game 6 of the 2005 NLCS, a win that sent Houston to its first World Series. In his career, Oswalt is 9-10 with a 3.69 ERA in the regular season and 2-0, 3.27 in the postseason against the Cardinals, who will trot out some hitters who have good numbers against the 34-year-old right-hander. Albert Pujols has hit .316 against Oswalt with seven homers, according to MLB Network. Rafael Furcal is a .333 hitter against Oswalt, Yadier Molina .364. And Lance Berkman, the former Jackson Generals star, knows Oswalt well from their many years together as Astros. Oswalt has battled a bad back all year, but remember, in his last outing, in the next-to-last game of the regular season, he beat Atlanta in what was a critical game for the Braves. It’s all about starting pitching in the postseason, and this is Oswalt’s moment. You never know if another will come along.
P.S. Thumbs up to former Mississippi Braves lefty Matt Harrison, who got his first postseason win in Texas’ ALDS clinching victory over Tampa Bay on Tuesday. Harrison struck out nine in five innings. … Thumbs down to former M-Braves outfielder Jordan Schafer, who was arrested on marijuana possession charges in Florida. Schafer, now with Houston, has been in trouble before. M-Braves fans will recall his 2008 suspension for a violation of MLB’s minor league drug policy. The Atlanta Braves may be happy that the enigmatic Schafer is someone else’s problem now.