Sean B. Fitzgerald It doesn’t go something like this, it goes exactly like this.

Phillies/Yankees World Series Preview

Previews are pointless. Rarely do they offer any insight into what their actually previewing. Most fans already know who is who and what is what. It's the World Series. If you didn't know the specifics, you probably weren't going to watch anyway. Especially with baseball. This 2009 season has been going on for about 3 years. Even if you tried to avoid the sport, you probably accumulated enough knowledge about these teams by accident. That's just how baseball is formatted. It's so long and time-consuming that you become interested with knowing it. It latches onto your psyche and lies dormant in your unconsciousness. So when someone asks you who's the right fielder for the Phillies, you can say "Jayson Werth!" without batting an eyelash.

Previews may be pointless, but people love them. That's why I am going to do a full scale, "Hold on to your seat!" preview of the 2009 World Series between the Philadelphia Phillies and New York Yankees. That's right, I'm going to do the whole "compare each facet of the game" thing. It's a newspaper/blog staple. It's quick, easy, and requires no real leg work or effort. It's the way life should be.

Starting Pitching

Advantage: Push

Obviously the Yankees right? No. I'm throwing out every game Sabathia, Burnett, and Pettitte pitched in these playoffs and looking at it from face value. I hate sounding like an ESPN talking head but "If Cliff Lee pitches like Cliff Lee, the Phillies have just as good a chance to win Game One against the Yankees". Cliche or not, it's true. The difference between Lee and Sabathia is essentially negligible. And the rest of the rotations for both teams is a wash. Ask any Yankee fan if he or she feels comfortable with Burnett on the mound. Ask any Phillie fan if  he or she feels good with Cole Hamels on the mound. And setting aside the insane atmosphere at Yankee Stadium when Pedro toes the mound in Game Two, he's going to keep the Phillies in the game. That I expect. The same goes for Pettitte who has been an absolute horse in his last three starts.

If you're going to look for a difference in the rotations, it's going to boil down to Game Four. Will CC throw the same on three days rest like he did in the ALCS? If CC throws well, can Joe Blanton match him? Until then, it's a push. Obviously, with the bandboxes these teams play in, the key will be keeping the ball within the field of play.

Lineup

Advantage: Phillies

I don't think I could have agonized over this more. Look at these lineups! Look at them! You trying telling me which team is more stacked. It's this close from being another push. Jeter or Rollins? Werth or Swisher? Howard or Teixeira? Ruiz or Posada? Cabrera or Victorino? Utley or Cano? Feliz or Rodriguez? Ibanez or Damon? I see significant advantages in some positions, but overall, it's too close to call.

So why am I choosing the Phillies? Experience

Sure the Yankees have some World Series experience. Jeter, Posada, and Damon all have been in World Series before. But those crazy Phillies are only one year removed from a championship. Excluding Ibanez, that whole offense has championship memories (and sugarplums) still dancing in their heads. I expect the Phillies to be loose and not press at the plate.

Bullpen

Advantage: Yankees

Let me sum up the bullpens for both teams. During the regular season, the bullpen for the Phillies (especially Brad Lidge) constantly imploded. Lidge blew something like 47 saves this year. New York on the other hand, had a terrific bullpen for a better part of the season. As soon as Phil Hughes was inserted as the set-up man for Mariano Rivera, all the tumblers clicked into place and the bullpen ERA plummeted.

Flash forward to now.

Suddenly Brad Lidge has transformed into the 2008 version of himself and Phil Hughes is pitching like me in 10th grade. Luckily, the Yankees have been able to mask his difficulties with...winning. Nothing covers up a team's weaknesses quite like the 'ol "W". Which brings me to the reason why I gave the edge to the Yankees. Mariano Rivera. If you're keeping track at home, Rivera will turn 40 years old on November 29th (A day before I turn 22). Frightening really. 40 years old and still the best at what he does, sigh...sorry (wipes drool), I lost my train of thought. Oh right.

Crowd

Advantage: Yankees

Screw defense and bench, those things are boring. Granted, their usually the things that decide World Series (see: 2006 Tigers). Let's get to the intangibles! The things that can't be measured. The things that matter in life. Say what you will about how home-field advantage is largely gone by the wayside in baseball and in sports in general. I disagree wholeheartedly. Especially with these two stadiums and fans. They are both rabid, smart, dedicated, and know how to motivate the right players at the right times. Both stadiums are loud, intimidating, and produce camera shaking noise. It's terrific. Good crowds can make a series, regardless of actual play.

Look, I really respect the Phillies fans for their loyalty and enthusiasm for the team they love. They're "true" fans. But where do they earn a significant demerit in my book? Towels. Oh, don't get me started on towels. The towel has become the hallmark of the "new" fan. Recently, when a franchise enters the playoffs for the first time in a long while, their marketing people go a little crazy. "Let's give every fan a towel and they can spin it in the air like an idiot every time the game gets exciting!" (See: Colorado Rockies, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Philadelphia Phillies). Excuse me for sounding a little Yankee leaning (If it wasn't obvious already), you'll never see a Yankee fan twirling a towel over his head. We use our hands to clap and our throats to yell unrelentingly at opposing players. Those are our tools. We use them proudly.

Prediction: I'm not going there.