Yankees take commanding 3-1 lead in World Series
Phillies ace pitcher Lee tries to keep team's championship dreams alive
Raymond Hupfer
Issue date: 11/4/09 Section: Sports
Game 4: Sabathia made the Game 4 start on three days' rest and did everything Joe Girardi and the Yanks could have hoped for, going nearly seven innings, holding the Phils to only three runs while striking out six, leaving with a 4-3 lead. But Joba Chamberlain wasn't able to hold the lead, allowing a two-out, two-strike, game-tying homer to Pedro Feliz in the bottom of the eighth inning. Unfortunately for the Phillies, Brad Lidge suffered his first implosion of the 2009 playoffs. With two outs, nobody on in the top of the ninth, Lidge allowed a Johnny Damon single, plunked Tex, allowed an A-Rod RBI double, and a two-run double to Jorge Posada, and just like that, the Phils were down 7-4 and were staring Rivera in the face. But the unfazed Rivera set down the Phils in order on just eight pitches to give the Yankees a commanding 3-1 series lead.
The Phillies are hoping to overcome a 3-1 deficit become the first
repeat World Series winners since the Yankees, who won three consecutive titles from 1998-2000.
But no matter how hot Werth is (.400 batting average, 2 home runs in the World Series) and no matter how dominant Lee is (3-0, 0.54 ERA this postseason), the Phils need their offense to start clicking. Outside of Werth, the rest of the Phillies' regular offense is hitting a woeful .219 in the Series, including a .200 series batting average from sparkplug Jimmy Rollins and a .188 average from slugging first baseman Ryan Howard. Expecting your starting pitchers to go out and allow just one or two runs to the Yankees' offense night in and night out is a recipe for failure, and right now, the Phils are finding that out the hard way.
The Yankees are hoping that the $423 million they spent this offseason and their $201 million payroll are enough to buy their first World Series title since 2000. While $180-million man Teixeira has been invisible (.071 World Series batting average through four games), fellow free agent signees Sabathia (3-1, 1.98 ERA this postseason) and Burnett (1-0, 1.50 in the World Series) have lived up to expectations. And despite the struggles of A-Rod (.143 average) and Robinson Cano (.133 average), the Yanks' offense has been able to produce due to strong efforts from Derek Jeter (.412 average) and Matsui (.500 average). Pettitte has provided a steady presence as the #3 starter, going 3-0 with a 3.24 ERA this postseason, and like always, it's Enter Sandman when Rivera takes the field.
Right now, things are looking bleak for the Phils' chances of repeating. There have only been four instances in World Series history where a team has come back from a 3-1 deficit to win the series with the last being the Kansas City Royals in 1985. Even if Lee could start the rest of the games for the Phils, their offense still has to find a way to turn things around. And since Lee obviously can't start more than one more game barring postponement, it's looking like the Yanks have all but secured their 27th World Series title.
The Phillies are hoping to overcome a 3-1 deficit become the first
repeat World Series winners since the Yankees, who won three consecutive titles from 1998-2000.
But no matter how hot Werth is (.400 batting average, 2 home runs in the World Series) and no matter how dominant Lee is (3-0, 0.54 ERA this postseason), the Phils need their offense to start clicking. Outside of Werth, the rest of the Phillies' regular offense is hitting a woeful .219 in the Series, including a .200 series batting average from sparkplug Jimmy Rollins and a .188 average from slugging first baseman Ryan Howard. Expecting your starting pitchers to go out and allow just one or two runs to the Yankees' offense night in and night out is a recipe for failure, and right now, the Phils are finding that out the hard way.
The Yankees are hoping that the $423 million they spent this offseason and their $201 million payroll are enough to buy their first World Series title since 2000. While $180-million man Teixeira has been invisible (.071 World Series batting average through four games), fellow free agent signees Sabathia (3-1, 1.98 ERA this postseason) and Burnett (1-0, 1.50 in the World Series) have lived up to expectations. And despite the struggles of A-Rod (.143 average) and Robinson Cano (.133 average), the Yanks' offense has been able to produce due to strong efforts from Derek Jeter (.412 average) and Matsui (.500 average). Pettitte has provided a steady presence as the #3 starter, going 3-0 with a 3.24 ERA this postseason, and like always, it's Enter Sandman when Rivera takes the field.
Right now, things are looking bleak for the Phils' chances of repeating. There have only been four instances in World Series history where a team has come back from a 3-1 deficit to win the series with the last being the Kansas City Royals in 1985. Even if Lee could start the rest of the games for the Phils, their offense still has to find a way to turn things around. And since Lee obviously can't start more than one more game barring postponement, it's looking like the Yanks have all but secured their 27th World Series title.
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