PHILADELPHIA - Sporting freshly trimmed, thick braids instead of his usual dreadlocks, Manny Ramirez has a slightly new look for the NL championship series to go with his reformed West Coast attitude.

On the field, it's the same old Manny. He just keeps hitting.

Ramirez changed the culture of the Los Angeles Dodgers, leading them to the playoffs with a dynamic performance after forcing his way out of Boston.

Riding their slugger's torrid hitting and a couple of masterful pitching performances, the Dodgers swept the heavily favored Chicago Cubs out of the first round. Getting past the Philadelphia Phillies and their strong pitching in the NLCS won't be that easy.

“They're the best team out there,” Ramirez said Wednesday. “These guys are great. We don't think we are better than them, but the key in the playoffs is to get in and anything can happen.”

Game 1 is Thursday night at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, with Derek Lowe (14-11) on the mound for the Dodgers against Cole Hamels (14-10).

Both teams have several outstanding players and a mix of interesting personalities, but all the focus was squarely on Ramirez the day before the opener. Cameras clicked and microphones followed the enigmatic left fielder everywhere he went before the Dodgers' workout.

Ramirez took it in stride.

“It's not my first rodeo,” he said.

He was charming, witty and humble, sitting down for nearly 20 minutes and answering questions on a wide range of topics.

Manny loves California, but he hasn't learned to surf just yet. He doesn't have the patience to walk 200 times a year like Barry Bonds. He enjoys playing for manager Joe Torre.

Just don't ask Ramirez about his final days in Boston that ended with plenty of acrimony.

“I don't want to talk about the past,” he said. “I don't look back. I move forward. I don't have anything bad to say about Boston.”

That goes for all his critics, too.

“My teammates know what kind of guy I am. That's where I'll leave it,” Ramirez said.

The 2004 World Series MVP, Ramirez already has two championship rings from his 7.5 seasons with the Red Sox. He wants another one with the Dodgers, who wouldn't be here without him.

Ramirez batted .396 with 17 essentially the same amount of rest. Tim Wakefield will start Game 4, with Matsuzaka, Beckett and Lester ready to pitch again in Games 5-7 if necessary.

“Nobody's going to throw three,” Francona said. “So having those three twice is really what's important, regardless of how it's lined up.”

Matsuzaka was 18-3 with a 2.90 ERA this season, best among the Boston starters in both categories. But he also led the rotation with 94 walks, raising his pitch count and limiting him to 167 2-3 innings.

“We're going to have to wait him out and see how he's throwing,” Rays rookie Evan Longoria said. “It's a little bit different when you're playing in a playoff game. Walks are so important, and if he's going to come out and do what he normally does, he usually walks a ton of guys and throws a lot of pitches early. If we can get him on the ropes early, we've really got to take advantage of that.”

The Red Sox have gone twice since 2004, sweeping the Series both times. But the Rays had never finished above .500 before this year, posting the worst record in the majors in '07.

All season long, the Rays were described as “surprising,” and some thought they would falter down the stretch. But with the AL East lead on the line in September, they rallied against Boston closer Jonathan Papelbon at Fenway Park one night and then took the series finale the next in 14 innings to turn back the Red Sox charge.