World Series Game 1 Liveblog: Yankees, Phillies Face Off

I know the Philly bloggers are against me, but that's OK. I'm up for betting a few bags of Cheetos with the Philly faithful. Much respect to them. Email me if you want to get it on... Because of the idiot, Bud Selig, we have baseball that will go into November so the weather is a big issue. I'm a typical "Obsessed Fan" when it comes to the playoffs and I love to call pitches like a catcher and manage the game like I'm the actual manager, so I'll be going nuts during the game.

Here's a quick breakdown of the series as I see it.

1B) Howard vs Teixeira

Howard has a monster bat, but his glove doesn't equal Tex's. Mark needs to have a good hitting series because they will pitch around A-Rod all series long. I do believe that Mark will have an impact on the field throughout, but it's really close.

Edge: Even

2B) Utley vs Cano

Utley is a far better hitter than Cano, drives in more runs and batting in the middle of the potent Philly lineup proves the point, but Cano did hit .320 and played excellent defense. Edge: Utley

SS) Jeter vs Rollins

This is an intriguing match-up because Rollins won the MVP last year for the NL, but if we look at comparing them in 2009, Derek had a much better year offensively. Rollins hit just .250 with an OBP of .296. Jeter hit .334 with an OBP of .406, but Rollins can still be deadly and he has more range than Jeter. However, Jeter has shown an incredible feel for the game especially in the playoffs that I have never seen before. His instincts are scary.

Edge: Jeter

3B) A-Rod vs Feliz

A-Rod has been playing out of his mind this post season so this isn't even close. Feliz does have a great glove and won't beat himself.

Edge: A-Rod

Outfield and DH:

All three Philly outfielders are better than the Yanks. Every one of them can hit for power and for the most part field well. They out HRed the Yankee starting outfield by an 80-66 margin, but where the Yanks have the edge is in the DH department with Matsui. He hit 28 HR's out of the fifth spot for the Bombers so at Yankee stadium that will be an advantage.

In Philly, the Yanks lose their 28 HR-man and replace him with a pitcher, so the Phillies have the power advantage when the Yanks come for cheese steaks.

Edge: Phillies

Starting Pitching:

CC, AJ and Andy get the advantage over the Phillies. Lee is awesome, but Pedro and Hamels are question marks at this point. The fourth game will be interesting because Girardi has said he may use only three starters for the entire series if it goes seven games. It might be CC no matter what in game four, but I think Pettitte is the only pitcher that Joe would worry about pitching on three days rest. If he changes his mind and uses Chad Gaudin, then Manuel has the edge because he has Happ and Blanton to step up if he needs them.

Here's where the weather comes in. If any game other than the first one is rained out then it makes it really easy for Girardi to stick with a three man rotation.

Edge: Yanks

Bullpen:

The Yankee pen hasn't been as solid as it was for the second half of the season and that might have been due to fatigue. They use a lot of young, home grown pitchers in the bullpen, but the one man that gives the Yanks the ultimate weapon is Mariano Rivera. Even at 39 years old, he's still the best of the best and can go two innings if needed. Lidge is still shaky in my mind so I think if the games are close going into the ninth with Philly trying to close out the Yanks in a game, hold your breath.

Edge: Yanks.

Managers:

Manuel is the reigning champion and Girardi is trying to get the crown. Charlie is a really likable man and makes it easy to root for him. They both make tons of moves during a game which could make them go on forever but until Girardi wins a championship, Charlie gets the nod. I think Girardi made a lot of bizarre moves in his playoff run so far, but they survived them. Will he use his instincts more or stick to his match-up/book mentality? I hope it's the latter.

Edge: Manuel

To me this series is a toss-up because of the strength of the Philly lineup and their toughness, but the Yanks are excellent at home and have Mariano. I'm hoping the Yanks win it in six, but what makes it a great sport is you never know who will step up and make the difference in a series like this.

Who will be the surprise of the 2009 World Series?

Follow John Amato on Twitter: www.twitter.com/JohnAmato

Comments

[h23154]

I stopped caring much about pro team sports when I got old enough to realize that players did not play for a team because that was where they were from. Before then I thought the Yanks were the best because NYC was the biggest and had the most players to choose from. I was about 8. That's a long time ago.

[iamjones]

oh my, tonight was painful. ouch that pitching!

signed,
a yankees fan

ps_mariano rivera is a badddd@55 and i cannot wait to see him close the final win for the series -what can i say, i'm an optimist.

[Joe The Nerd Ferraro - Huffpost Blogger]

wow that was a pretty funny blog. you do write comedy well.

Why would we want Cheetos in Philly - you have them at third base. (I'll take my Tastykakes with Butterscotch.)

Howard's glove is fine - how many teams has Teixeira been on over the last 3 years? How many MVP's does Teixeira own?
Edge: Howard (you know the recent league MVP)!

Jeter is starting to look a little grey on the scalp. Rollins did much better in the WBC then Jeter. When Rollins get on the Phils win - it's a talisman.

A-Roid - need to say more?

Did you happen to notice CC's meltdown with the Brew Crew last year when playing the Phils. Brett Myers got in his head and CC's strings got tangled.

Bullpens? Hey did we get to see all of the Tankees' bullpen. The Phillies we yelling "Everybody Hits!" - the Yanks responded with "Everybody Pitches!"

Tell you what - Phillies in 3 - don't embarrass youselves with a game 4...

[jcwtts1]

What I can't understand is this insistence that Tex is as good as Howard. Beyond an MVP, beyond being read hot and clutch as all get out, Teixiera is having an AWFUL post season. Hitting what, 200? Arod has been the worst good post season player in history and he's had two good series in his life and you want to anoint him, while Howard basically got the Phils into the playoff single offhandedly three years in a row with Monster Septembers and monster HR and RBI numbers. If I argued that Howard was better than Pujols you would tell me I was being a homer... that is what you sound like when you compare a guy who has been on 3 different teams in 2 years to the best power hitter in the NL... for the last 3 years. I give you Jeter because Captain America is the best playoff player I've ever seen. I give you Arod because he is Arod but I take Lee over CC, easy to say tonight but I've said it all week to NY fans, and I like your take on our OF. If you could just stop loving a guy who hasn't produced yet in Tex we might even agree. But yeah, I'll take some of any action you have... fightin phillies in 5

[MikaS]

I ♥ Rivera! He is amazing! Go Yankees!