World Series Recap: Yankees Win, 4-2

I told you so.

I predicted Yankees in 6, and look what happens. Yankees in 6.

I must be pretty good at this stuff.

Seriously though, I liked the Yankees for a few reasons, and they proved it against the Phillies all series. The chemistry on this team, coupled with outstanding production from some of the usual suspects (C.C. Sabathia, Alex Rodriguez) and some unusual ones (MVP Hideki Matsui, Johnny Damon), helped the Yankees put away Philadelphia for their twenty-seventh World Series title.

Give the Phillies credit; Cliff Lee might be the best pitcher in baseball, and he certainly looked like it against a tough Yankees lineup, and players like Jayson Werth and Chase Utley proved that Philadelphia is for real. However, in the end it simply wasn't enough to beat the Bombers.

This was a captivating World Series as well, something Major League Baseball was hoping for. And while it wasn't the matchup they necessarily wanted to happen (imagine the ratings on a Dodgers-Yankees series...yeesh), the Phillies proved that they belonged in the same conversation with the Yankees and both teams gave the audience a great show.

Congratulations to the New York Yankees, and hopefully next year's World Series will be as good as this year's was.

Game 3: Yankees 8, Phillies 5

Even the rain couldn't delay the inevitable.

The Phillies did their best to protect their starter Cole Hamels, including two home runs by Jayson Werth, but in the end it just wasn't enough as the Yankees came from down 3-0 to win the game 8-5. Alex Rodriguez hit his first home run of the World Series, Nick Swisher had some timely hits including a home run, and the Yankees took advantage of Hamels' struggles, breaking him down in the middle innings to take the lead for good.

Phillies manager Charlie Manuel tabbed Joe Blanton as the Game 4 starter, while the Yankees will pitch ace C.C. Sabathia on 3 days' rest (and why wouldn't you; he's been absolutely unstoppable on short rest in the last two postseasons). If Blanton can out-duel Sabathia, it would be a massive victory for the Phillies, who desperately need to avoid going down 3-1 going back to the Bronx. If the Yankees pull it out though, you can go ahead and cue the Sinatra - the Series is essentially over.

Game 2: Yankees 3, Phillies 1

Pitching continues to define this series. Just like I said.

Yankees starter A.J. Burnett had it all working last night, while Mark Teixiera and Hideki Matsui came up big-time solo home runs as the Yankees beat Pedro Martinez (again) in Yankee Stadium in the playoffs. And while Pedro didn't have to bend over and call the Yankees "Daddy" like he did while he was with the Red Sox, he still gets the loss as the series shifts to Philadelphia tied at 1-1.

The most interesting thing to watch on Sunday night will be whether Cole Hamels can regain the dominant form he displayed last year in the playoffs for the Phillies. He has been average at best this postseason, and he's definitely going to have to step up if the Phillies are going to take control of this series. Otherwise, you can chalk up another win for Andy Pettite's postseason career and a 2-1 advantage for the boys in pinstripes.

Game 1: Phillies 6, Yankees 1

I knew Cliff Lee was good, but that was ridiculous.

You could see that it wasn't going to be a good night for the Yankees from the outset. Starting pitcher C.C. Sabathia walked Chase Utley his first time out, then later in the game gave up two homers to Utley. Couple that with Lee's masterful performance where he allowed only one unearned run - on a throwing error by shortstop Jimmy Rollins in the 9th inning - and the Phillies came away with the huge victory in Yankee Stadium.

But Yankees manager Joe Girardi said it best: "He can't pitch every night."

Game 2 pits former Yankee public enemy #1 Pedro Martinez against the enigmatic A.J. Burnett. Burnett was the key in the Angels series; he pitched well, and the Yankees won. If he pitches well tonight, the Yankees could avoid going down 0-2 going to Philadelphia. If not, Pedro gets another victory at the expense of the Bombers and the Phillies take one more step towards back-to-back World Series titles.

2009 World Series Preview

This is the matchup everyone wanted to see.

Philadelphia. New York. Phillies. Yankees. Howard. A-Rod. Rollins. Jeter. Hamels/Lee. Sabathia/Burnett. Does it GET any better than this?

It's the defending world champions against the team that defined the term "world champion". It's the team with the most chemistry against the team with the most talent. This is the matchup that MLB dreamed of, and they got it after the Yankees defeated the Angels and the Phillies throttled the Dodgers.

So who is the favorite? The Yankees' offense looks unstoppable, and 3B Alex Rodriguez has (finally) looked like the player the Yankees thought they were getting when they added him to the roster years ago. The Phillies are the first NL team to return to the World Series to defend their title since the 1970s Cincinnati Reds and "The Big Red Machine", and have enjoyed the continued emergence of players like OFs Jason Werth and Shane Victorino.

This series is going to come down to pitching; the Yankees have struggled in their bullpen of late, but no one has been more dominant than C.C. Sabathia the last two years. Add him to A.J. Burnett and Andy Pettitte, and that is a formidable trio. I just don't think that Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels, and Pedro Martinez are better than those three, which is why I think the Yankees will win.

Prediction: Yankees in 6.