Disclaimer: I apologize in advance for being completely bitter for the next week, as I have been keeping my fingers crossed for a meteor to hit the east coast rather than allowing the Phillies or Yankees win the World Series. Although, as you can see, I wrote this post and the game was played, so here’s how it went.

Game 1 of the 2009 World Series had a pair of stars as the Philadelphia Phillies upended the New York Yankees 6-1 to take a 1-0 series lead. The starting pitching matchup that everyone was looking forward to was not completely one sided, but as the game went on you knew only one of the pitchers accomplishing something special. Phillies SP Cliff Lee had the game of his life in his first World Series during his first postseason. His counterpart CC Sabathia wasn’t bad, but he was not nearly as in control as Lee was from the start of the game. On the offensive side, Phils 2B Chase Utley hit two graceful homers to lead jump start the Philadelphia offense.

Each starting pitcher had to deal with some soft rain and wind on the mound, but it didn’t get the best of either pitcher throughout the game. Sabathia started off the top of the 1st inning with two quick outs but he loaded the bases right after. It CC 24 pitches to get out of the inning, but he did get the third out without any damage on a Raul Ibanez soft grounder. Lee, on the other hand, did not show any signs of nerves or struggling from the first batter of the game (a Derek Jeter strikeout). So you knew that this matchup of the last two AL Cy Young award winners (both with the Indians) and ‘best’ friends was going to be a good display of two of the best pitchers in baseball.

The scoring got under way in the top of the 3rd inning as Chase Utley his a two-strike homer on a high fly ball to right. Believe it or not, that was the first homerun from a visitor at Yankee Stadium this postseason. Although, it’s still a joke of a stadium. Back to Lee, he had seven strikeouts through four innings to keep his team up 1-0.

Homer one - goner

The ‘non-exciting moment of the game’ came in the bottom of the 5th inning with no outs and a man on first. Robinson Cano hit a flair to shortstop Jimmy Rollins, which Rollins wanted to let it bounce for a 6-3 double play, but Rollins caught it. He stepped on second and threw to first but the ump was not deeked by Rollins. The baserunner, Hideki Matsui, was obviously confused and stood a few feet off the base and out of the baseline. Howard tagged him, but the umps weren’t sure what the call should be. They huddled and a full minute later they got the call right – Cano out on the catch and Matsui out on the tag for a double play. I was repeatedly saying to the umps, “you guys better get this right!” – in reference to them missing a TON of calls this postseason.

At least they got it right

Back to the game, and back to Utley. The slugging second baseman reached over the plate in the top of the 6th inning for a solo homerun BOMB to right center – his second homer off Sabathia of the game. It’s the first multi-homerun game in the WS since his teammate Ryan Howard did it last year. Meanwhile, in the bottom of the 6th, Lee showed how much of a cool customer he was in this huge start by catching a soft popup on the mound completely nonchalantly. That was proof that he was in the zone against the best offense in baseball.

More scoring for the Phils in the top of the 8th from three walks by the Yankee bullpen, which led to two Phillies runs.  Raul Ibanez did not spoil with the bases loaded as he did earlier in the game as two runs scored on the wet ground allowed to put the Phillies up by 4 and give Cliff Lee some deserved breathing room. Shane Victorino and Ryan Howard added an RBIs in the top of the 9th for a 6-0 lead.
 
Lee went back out to the mound to finish what he started aiming for the first WS shutout since Josh Beckett against the Yanks in game 6 of the 2003 WS for the Marlins. Although, after allowing the first two men on, Jimmy Rollins made a dumb throw to first on a double play attempt to allow an unearned run to score and break the shutout. Lee still couldn’t be shaken though, as he struck out the next two batters to end the game. Lee finished with a complete game with no earned runs and 10 strikeouts. What an amazing start. Seriously. We knew he’d be good, but not this good. Props to Lee for not letting the big stage get to him in the slightest and ‘easily’ giving his team a one game advantage.

The quest for back-to-back titles continues on Thursday in game 2 for the Phillies as they have their ageless wonder Pedro Martinez on the mound. Either way, the Phillies have to be happy to steal a game before they go back home, and even more so, it’s the first game of the series. The Yankees will throw AJ Burnett, who is either good or bad, but almost always wild. He can’t give up extra runners against the Phillies offense, that’s for sure! Note to Phillies fans (and to Yankees fans too): the winner of game 1 has won the last six World Series matchups.