World Series 2009 Preview

This may ultimately be the best World Series since 2001 between the Yankees and Diamondbacks, which went 7 games, and was capped off by a series-winning duck-snort by Luis Gonzalez over the head of Derek Jeter. As a Mets fan, I've been entirely disgusted by the outlook of fellow Mets fans who deem this World Series matchup as a "Mets fan's worst nightmare" or "hell." Who cares? The Mets' season was over almost as soon as it began, and fans have to put the season to rest and turn over a new leaf. As said before, its okay to be a MLB fan. You have to respect what the Phillies did this year off a 2008 World Series Championship.

Position Matchup (offense)

C- Posada- one of the best offensive catchers of his generation; Ruiz has been good this postseason
1B- Howard- very clutch/hot in the playoffs, consecutive rbi game streak, Teixera hitting .205
2B- Utley- even on regular season, but advantage goes to Utley mostly because Cano hasn't hit well with RISP
SS- Jeter- guy's a hitter, doesn't matter the situation; Rollins had huge walk-off 2 rbi double, but still doesn't stack up to Derek Jeter
3B- Rodriguez- most deadly hitter in playoffs, IBB with 2 outs bases empty in 9th inning against Angels closer Brian Fuentes
LF- Push (Ibanez/Damon)- Ibanez has better overall stats, but fizzled after an injury during the year and their postseason stats are even
CF- Victorino- similar stats, "the Flying Hawaiian" has a 20 pt better avg
RF- Werth- 36 hr 99rbi .268 vs. Swisher's 26 hr 81 rbi .249

Position Matchup (defense)

C- Ruiz- Posada gets flack for his defensive play, he's in there for offense
1B- Teixera- no question, 2x glove glover- will win again this year
2B- Push (Utley/Cano)- both above average infielders who will make bone-head plays from time to time
SS- Push (Jeter/Rollins)- if you give anyone an edge it would be Jeter for his spectacular throws, but Rollins has better arm
3B- Rodriguez - 2x gold glover; Pedro Feliz committed 15 errors this season to A-Rod's 9.
LF- Damon- it doesn't always look good, but Damon usually makes the play despite his terrible arm; Phillies have put Ben Francisco in LF as a defensive replacement late for Ibanez in the playoffs
CF- Victorino- covers a remarkable amount of ground in CF; Melky can be an adventure
RF- Werth- also covers quite a bit of ground in RF; Swisher will lose the ball in the lights

Overall

Starting Pitching
NYY- Sabathia, Burnett, Pettitte over Lee, Hamels, Martinez, Blanton

Bullpen
NYY- only give it to Yankees because of Mariano Rivera; Chamberlain, Hughes, Coke were supposed to be the bridge to Mariano, but they have faltered. Weak Phillies bullpen hasn't blown any saves with Brad Lidge and Ryan Madson this postseason

Offense
PHI- close, but big Yankees boppers like Mark Teixera have not been as impressive as the explosive Phillies lineup.

Defense
Infield- NYY- fabulous defense all-around except for maybe Cano at times.
Outfield- PHI- Werth and Victorino over Cabrera and Swisher any day of the week.
Overall- NYY- Infield is key to overall defense here, whereas Melky and Swisher can get by.

Manager
Charlie Manuel- won last year's World Series; Girardi won NL Manager of the Year with Florida Marlins some years ago, and the quick hook on pitchers in the playoffs along with the offensive reshuffling sans DH in Philadelphia might hurt.

Intangibles
Push- the Yankees came back to win many many times this year, and have had some late clutch hits to win games (see A-Rod); the Phillies had a late walk-off double by Jimmy Rollins when faced with their final out.

Keys to the Series: Starting Pitching and Bullpen
Both teams have worthy aces in Sabathia and Lee. Burnett can be rattled but has been good overall thus far, whereas Hamels with a 6.00+ ERA is not getting it done. Having Pettitte as a #3 with all his postseason experience overshadows Blanton, Happ, and even Pedro Martinez.
Coming into their ALCS with the Angels, the Yankees bullpen was rock-solid, however Joba and Phil Hughes have been anything but solid. Couple this with a poor Phillies bullpen that finished games with moderate trouble and you are beginning to see parity among these two bullpens minus of course Mariano Rivera.

Prediction: This World Series is tough to call. If Yankees starting pitching and bullpen are good, they win in 6. Otherwise the Phillies will win in 7 games, as they will need to go the distance to overcome their poorer starting pitching and unsure bullpen; expect their wins to include 8-6 slugfests to stay competitive.