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For the Phillies Chase Utley and the Dodgers’ James McDonald, the bridge across this social, economic, professional and cultural divide is the high school they attended, Long Beach Polytechnic.

In a letter, Bob Natiello pleaded guilty to his life of crime as a turnstile boy at Ebbets Field in 1944, when a seventh-place Dodgers team played there.

The Phillies lead the best-of-seven series, two games to none, and are halfway toward their first World Series appearance in 15 years.

Two sixth-inning homers off Derek Lowe in Game 1 lifted Philadelphia to its first victory in the N.L.C.S. since 1993.

This much is certain in the N.L.C.S.: the Dodgers and the Phillies are evenly matched in 60-something managers who have been some places and learned some things.

Brad Lidge’s high-octane fastballs and wickedly deceptive slider have closed games for the Phillies, who host the Dodgers in Game 1 of the N.L.C.S.

The former Yankees manager described the feeling of reaching the playoffs with the Dodgers as “satisfaction, more than vindication.”

Nobody knew it in 1983, except for Phillies fans, but it was pretty much the end of the only sustained era of sporting excellence Philadelphia has known.

For Nomar Garciaparra, Jeff Kent, Andruw Jones and other veterans, the Dodgers pursuit of a World Series title has gone on largely without them.

The Dodgers’ Manny Ramirez and the Phillies Manager Jerry Manuel — an unlikely pair dating back to their time together with the Cleveland Indians — both know how it feels to be underestimated.