Posted by
OB Busch on Wednesday, October 28, 2009 4:45:03 PM
It seems that something is amiss when the NBA starts their season
before Major League Baseball finishes their season.
Third Eye Sports presents a preview to the
2009 World Series
New York Yankees vs. Philadelphia Phillies
Hitting
Both teams have ‘brand name hitters’ and are about even with
the first 5 batters. The difference will rest with the 6th through
8th hitters in the line-up. For the Yankees that’s 2b Robinson Canu,
1b Nick Swisher, and OF Melky Cabrera or OF Hideki Matsui.
For the Phillies the 6 through 8 spots are OF Raul Ibanez, 3b Pedro Feliz,
and C Carlos Ruiz. While Ryan Howard, Jason Werth, Alex Rodriguez, and
Derek Jeter will get the headlines the 6 through 8 hitters will help decide
the series.
Pitching
The top 3 starters play big in the World Series as 2 of the 3 will
pitch twice. The Yankees top 3 are CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett,
and Andy Petite.
For the Phillies it’s Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels, and Joe Blanton.
While the Yankees may have an edge here, Lee and Hamels tend to be
‘big game’ pitchers.
In the bullpen the Yankees have Mariano Rivera, one of the best.
The Phillies have Brad Lidge, one of the shakiest.
Series
As always in a big series, it will boil down to who comes ready to play.
The Yankees seem to be the favorite according to the ‘experts’.
They mention tradition, which doesn’t win games. The
‘experts’ point to the Yankees 103-59 regular season record,
umm…this is the post season.
To me it boils down to which team gets production from the peripheral players.