The most coveted possession in all of baseball is not a Gold Glove, Silver Slugger or even an MVP award. In fact, it's a relatively small trophy compared to these others, but the World Series ring carries more weight than any individual award. And, starting tomorrow, the New York Yankees and Philadelphia Phillies will be fighting it out in the 2009 Fall Classic to see who brings home the bling.
This should be the most exciting World Series of my college career, as I think the series will need at least six games to be decided. The past three Commissioner's Trophies were won in Games 5, 4 and 5 of the 2006, 2007 and 2008 World Series, respectively. The Cardinals, Red Sox and Phillies were all great teams in their championship seasons but they simply overpowered their competitors. This year, the road to the ring will not be as short, as both teams appear evenly matched with great hitting and very good starting pitching.
The Yankees are gunning for their 27th title in franchise history, a staggering number if you consider the first World Series was in 1903 - that's right, the Bronx Bombers have won 26 of the 104 World Series in baseball history, an even 25 percent of this sport's championships. Leading the charge as usual will be shortstop Derek Jeter and closer Mariano Rivera, each of whom won four titles with the team from 1996-2000, as well as a trio of highly paid first-time Yankees: starters CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett, and first baseman Mark Teixeira. And, finally, third baseman Alex Rodriguez is proving his worth in the playoffs and will try to continue his clutch hitting in the most important series of his career.
Meanwhile, the Phillies will be playing to win their third World Series title and are trying to become the first team since the (guess who?) 1999 Yankees to repeat as World Series champions. After brushing off the Rockies and Dodgers to win the National League pennant, the Phillies are well-rested heading into tomorrow's game. They last played Oct. 21 and will open the Fall Classic a full week after winning the pennant. The Phillies also march out a lineup filled with All-Stars, including first baseman Ryan Howard, second baseman Chase Utley and outfielders Shane Victorino, Raul Ibanez and Jayson Werth. When all three of your outfielders make the All-Star team in the same season, you know you have something special happening.
A quick side-note about the series: One thing that still confuses me about MLB scheduling is that the 2009 World Series is actually going to finish in November and not October, for only the second time in the history of the Fall Classic. Game 4 of this series will be played Nov. 1, so even a sweep means the champion would be crowned in the eighth month of the season. I know it's a trivial thing, but baseball was meant to start in April and finish in October. It shouldn't be that hard to make that happen!
Anyway, back to what really matters: the match up. During inter-league play this past May, the two teams played a three-game series in Yankee Stadium. The Phillies took two games to win the series, but all three games were close, with two decided by two runs or less. After watching the playoffs this year to date, there's no reason to believe either team can dominate the other in the World Series. It's not going to be like 1950, when the two franchises last met in the World Series and the Yankees pulled off the four game sweep. Rather, it will be a drama-filled series, and each game promises to be thrilling.\nTomorrow's opening game is a great example of the many storylines of this year's Fall Classic. Two lefties who have been in very similar situations the past two seasons will take the mound against each other, both in their first career World Series. In 2008, CC Sabathia was dealt mid-season from the Indians to the Brewers and went 11-2 with seven complete games and a 1.65 ERA to carry his new team to the playoffs. This year, Cliff Lee was shipped mid-season from the Indians to the Phillies and went 7-4 with two complete games in 12 starts. Sabathia was named the 2009 ALCS MVP, while Lee is 2-0 this postseason with a miniscule 0.74 ERA in three games. It will be a clash of two southpaw titans and a great way to open this fantastic series.\nIf you really want to know my prediction, here it is: Yankees in six. Enjoy the series, and I hope that you'll watch and find out who the newest Mr. November is going to be.
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