The LoHud Yankees Blog

Since Gannett, the company which owns The Journal News, also has a paper in Wilmington, Del., there will be plenty of coverage on both sides of this series. Those guys do a great job covering the Phillies.

Anyway, Martin Frank, who is the columnist there, and I both wrote columns in today’s papers about why each team will win the World Series:

He picked the Phillies in seven.

I picked the Yankees in six.

If you want to hear more about my prediction – as well as get Chad’s – check out the live chat that starts at noon. We’ll be taking all your World Series questions. Also, if you’re interested in a position-by-position breakdown of the series – something I’m sure we’ll also talk about on the chat – check out how I see the match-ups here.

The Yankees just released their World Series roster and RHP Brian Bruney has been added, along with pinch-hitter Eric Hinske. Pinch-runner Freddy Guzman and third catcher Francisco Cervelli were removed.

Dropping Cervelli indicates the Yankees may be scrapping the A.J. Burnett/Jose Molina pairing, and sticking with Jorge Posada behind the plate in every game. Adding Hinske makes perfect sense because pinch-hitters will be needed in the NL park when pitchers have to bat.

Bruney was left off the roster in the first two rounds but pitched in instructional league games in Tampa during the ALDS before traveling with the team for the ALCS. He last pitched on Oct. 2 (one scoreless inning against the Rays). With the potential for short-rest starts (and thus, potentially shorter starts) in the World Series, an extra arm in the bullpen is more valuable to the Yankees than a third catcher.

A few programming notes as the wait continues for what – weather permitting – should be a terrific night at the Stadium tonight:

The performance by Jay-Z and Alicia Keys has been postponed until tomorrow night. Instead of doing “Empire State of Mind” before Game 1, the weather has forced MLB to make it part of the pre-game for Game 2. Seems there were concerns that the set-up of the stage and other equipment might have damaged the field if it was all wet, so the show was pushed back a day.

Also, for those looking for a place to watch the Yankees-Phillies game on Sunday, the Yankees are opening up the Stadium for another viewing party. Here’s the official release:

The New York Yankees announced today that they will open the Yankee Stadium Field Level and Great Hall to the public to watch the broadcast of the World Series Game 4 from Philadelphia on Sunday, November 1. (The opening will be dependent on weather conditions in Philadelphia permitting the game to be played.)

Turnstiles between Gates 4 and 6 will open at 7:00 p.m. for the 8:20 p.m. game. Fans can watch the Game in the Great Hall or in the opened sections of the Field Level.

“When we opened the Stadium for Game 3 in the ALCS, the response was positive and the energy from our fans was truly infectious. They really enjoyed coming together to watch the game,” said Hal Steinbrenner, Yankees Managing General Partner. “Once we reached the World Series, we felt that it was the perfect time to open the Stadium again. We remain grateful for the support of the best fans in baseball.”

Food and concession stands will be open and available to fans. NYY Steak and Hard Rock Café will also be open.

Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, Andy Pettitte and Jorge Posada have been together for a long time and now the Yankees “core four” are going for ring No. 5. I looked at how important this group has been to the franchise – not just this year but overall – in a column for our comprehensive World Series preview section. Check out the cool illustration from Bill Becerra, too.

Joining that core has been a trio of newcomers, and Chad Jennings digs into how the Yankees went about adding Mark Texieira, A.J. Burnett and tonight’s starter, CC Sabathia, as well as what those additions have meant to the team (hint: a lot!).

No World Series special section would be complete without a piece on Alex Rodriguez, and Chad has an insightful look back at the emotional year that A-Rod had endured. Can his run continue in his first World Series? We’ll see.

Speaking of A-Rod, look out for falling buildings this World Series, as A-Rod and Ryan Howard and a slew of other power hitters take aim at the fences in two hitter’s parks. Josh Thomson looks at how this series could be historic in terms of power, and there’s a great chart that goes along with his story. Check it out.

Josh also delves into the managerial match-up in the series, one which features a rookie postseason manager (Joe Girardi) and the defending World Series champ manager (in Charlie Manuel).

George Steinbrenner will be in the house tonight, I wrote, and he’s been on everyone’s mind as the Yankees have crept closer to title No. 27. It’ll be great to see him make a rare in-person appearance at the Stadium.

The Boss will be watching the same pitching match-up he saw during his only other trip to the new Stadium: CC Sabathia vs. Cliff Lee (who was pitching for Cleveland back then). Chad has more on an opening collision of aces.

The Yankees and Phillies have met only one other time in the World Series, and that was in 1950 – when the Yankees won in a four-game sweep. Rick Carpiniello has a very interesting look back at that series.

Carp also has a story on the importance of the Yankees two lefty relievers. Damaso Marte and Phil Coke will get plenty of action this series as the Phillies have a ton of lefthanded hitters.

The notebook leads with all signs pointing to Chad Gaudin getting a start in the series, as the Yankees stretched him out with a simulated game yesterday. There’s also news about Jimmy Rollins sticking to a prediction (he says Phillies in five), potential roster changes for the Yankees and more.

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I also did some position-by-position match-ups for the World Series, though I can’t seem to find them on the web site (as you can see, there’s a ton of stuff). If I can figure that out, I’ll post it.

Lastly, a reminder: Join Chad and me at noon for a World Series edition of the LoHud Yankees blog Video Live Chat! We’re taking all your questions and answering in real-time, so stop by and check it out here.

Phillies manager Charlie Manuel tells a story like none other. You could call him folksy. I think he sounds a lot like some of my friends from Missouri. Manuel was CC Sabathia’s first manager in the big leagues. It was 2001 and Sabathia was a 20-year-old who had never pitched above Double-A. Manuel had to fight to get Sabathia on the big league roster out of spring training. It’s a long story, but it’s a good story, and Manuel told it this afternoon at the stadium. Here’s Manuel…

You know, CC is a great talent, and he’s a tremendous pitcher. But one of the biggest things, I say one of the biggest things he’s got is he has a real big desire, and he loves to pitch. He’s a competitor.

You know, I remember the first time that I really actually saw CC, we took him to a Hall of Fame — I think it was a Hall of Fame game – and we might have been playing the Yankees. No, it was Texas, but anyway. We were playing somebody, and because he was in the minor leagues and he was one of our high draft choices and everything, we brought him to that game, and he got lit up. He got lit up pretty good.

I remember when I walked up and told him, I said, ‘Don’t worry about it, kid, because you’re going to be a real good pitcher one of these days, you’re going to pitch in the big leagues for a long time.’ Ever since then, when we’d go to spring training and stuff, of course he would go to spring training and I’d always go watch him pitch. I used to like to watch him hit, too, because he could hit.

Eventually, I think about a year and a half or something went by, and he went to spring training with us (in big league camp), and once we had him in spring training, Dick Pole and I — Dick Pole was my pitching coach — we wanted to look at him and see if he could help us. Actually the first couple times I saw him pitch, I knew he could help us because he had that kind of talent.

We went to Venezuela to play Houston Astros in an exhibition in spring training, and all of us were wondering what CC was like, and if he could handle Major League hitters. In the first inning he had the bases loaded. He could probably tell you better than I can, but he had the bases loaded and we had Bagwell and we had the center fielder, Hidalgo and Berkman, and CC got out of the inning. He struck two of them out, popped one of them up, and I told Dick Pole, ‘He’s ready.’

So we went back, and we started (the spring training schedule) and he pitched a few times, and we used to get in these arguments every meeting that we had with the player development department. We’d get in all these arguments and I’d want to keep him, and finally we won out. And we promised that when we took him that we would kind of monitor him and break him in.

Actually, he would go out and pitch, he’d pitch sometimes four and two thirds or five innings, and I want to say he ended up 17-5, but we were worried about working him too much. And everybody kept telling me about pitching him a lot, and his pitch count and everything like that. Actually if you go back and look, like from the middle of August through September, CC was our best pitcher. And he was probably, without a doubt he was our strongest pitcher, and he finished the season real big out here.

Where he’s at now tells a story because that’s kind of — he’s every bit that good. For us to beat CC, we’ve got to beat a good pitcher, and I have all the respect in the world for him. As a matter of fact, I like the heck out of him.

4:50 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.  Yankees hit
5:00 p.m.  Gates open to the public
6:00 p.m. – 6:40 p.m.  Phillies hit
7:30 – 7:55 p.m.  Pregame ceremonies
7:55 p.m.  Yankees take the field
7:57 p.m.  First pitch

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Gerry Davis, a 26-year umpire, will serve as crew chief for the World Series. He’ll be behind the plate for Game 1. You may remember that Major League Baseball usually includes one umpire who will be calling his first World Series, but they decided to change that after a series of blown calls in the first two rounds this year. Everyone on this crew has World Series experience.

Here’s how the umpires line up for Game 1, with their postseason experience.

HP Gerry Davis 9 DS; 7 LCS; 3 WS
1B Jeff Nelson 5 DS; 2 LCS; 1 WS
2B Brian Gorman 8 DS; 3 LCS; 1 WS
3B Mike Everitt 6 DS; 3 LCS; 1 WS
LF Dana DeMuth 6 DS; 5 LCS; 3 WS
RF Joe West 5 DS; 7 LCS; 3 WS

Here’s the official release from Major League Baseball…

First Lady of the United States Michelle Obama, Dr. Jill Biden, and other dignitaries and elected officials will attend Game One of the 2009 World Series in support of returning veterans and their families. Due to their attendance, security will be increased in and around Yankee Stadium. Fans entering the ballpark will be required to pass through security which will cause delays in getting to their seats.

MLB is offering the following tips to fans attending the game:

• Arrive early to allow for enough time to enter the park as you should expect long lines.
• The gates open at 5:00 p.m. Eastern
• On-field ceremonies begin at 7:30 p.m. Eastern
• Do not bring bottles or coolers of any kind into the ballpark. They will not be permitted.
• Do not bring anything that you would not be allowed to bring on a plane. The rules for what items you can bring into the stadium will be the same as TSA restrictions, which you can find at www.tsa.gov. Any items surrendered at the gates will not be returned.
• Please minimize items you bring into the stadium to speed up the inspection process.

Does any team in baseball portray confidence outwardly more than these Phillies? I don’t know. What I do know is they held court this afternoon in the Great Hall and appeared unintimidated. Jimmy Rollins stood behind the prediction he made on Jay Leno last night that Philadelphia would win the series in five. Why? “Our team,” Rollins said, as if to ask, “Why else?”

Here is Rollins, the captain of swagger himself, talking about the series, his confidence, fellow NoCal native CC Sabathia and Shane Victorino in a skirt:

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The Phillies are known for yapping, but their big man talks with his bat. Ryan Howard is one of only four players in baseball history with four straight seasons of 40 homers and 130 RBI. The others you’ve heard of: Ruth, Griffey Jr. and Sosa.

Howard talked about the challenge presented by CC Sabathia, the predictions of Rollins and how impressed he’s been with Alex Rodriguez this October:

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Like warm weather, sunshine, hot dogs and beer, games are always a little more fun when Pedro Martinez is involved. Love him or hate him, Pedro on the mound at Yankee Stadium in Game 2 will engender emotion more than perhaps any moment in the new park to that point.

Pedro had us all smiling with his unique answers this afternoon. However, he talked mostly serious talk, refusing mostly, as Chad said earlier, to address the Yankees.

Pedro talked about the vulgarity thrown his way over the years and how this World Series will be nothing; what it means to pitch in the World Series after vowing a return to his dying father; and how this club compares to the 2004 Red Sox.

Part 1:

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Part 2:

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A couple other quick notes on the Phillies:
• Brett Myers will replace former Yankee Miguel Cairo on the roster.
• Brad Lidge said over the last month a healthier knee finally allowed him to push off the rubber. He credited it for his turnaround.
• Many Phillies wondered aloud why the New York Post chose Victorino to don the skirt. “It’s fun. I think it’s just a little weird that I became the villain, I guess, to be made a mockery of, but hey it’s about going out there and playing the game ultimately,” Victorino said. Someone told him they’d have picked a different skirt. “Different legs, too,” he said.
• With the Super Bowl-style media day, this World Series already has a bigger feel than last year in Tampa/St. Pete. “This is the stage,” Lidge said. “It doesn’t get any bigger than this.” Rollins later called Philadelphia “the little red-headed brother” of New York. Fan those flames, Jimmy.

Pitching coach Dave Eiland said the Yankees haven’t ruled out the idea of sticking with a three-man rotation in the World Series, a plan that would force all three starters to pitch on short rest. That said, Chad Gaudin is scheduled to throw a 70 to 80 pitch bullpen session this afternoon at Yankee Stadium.

“We’re going to stretch him out today, as best we can,” Eiland said.

The Yankees believe they can get Gaudin stretched out enough to throw 80 or 90 pitches. Eiland wouldn’t definitively say Gaudin would be the fourth starter — or that there would be a fourth starter — but he did say that Joba Chamberlain would only be able to go two or three innings at the most.

Stretching Guadin out today “probably” makes him unavailable in Games 1 and 2, Eiland said.

UPDATE, 2:33 p.m.: The Yankees have announced a rally in Times Square on Wednesday at 12:30 p.m.

UPDATE, 3:30 p.m.: Girardi just said that the Yankees will not announce their rotation beyond Game 3. Sabathia, Burnett, Pettitte, TBA. Also, no roster announcement today.

UPDATE, 4:35 p.m.: Pedro Martinez said at one point that he wasn’t going to comment specifically on the Yankees, but he did say New York has “as good of a lineup as you’re going to find.”

UPDATE, 4:54 p.m.: Josh here with audio from Joe Girardi and CC Sabathia.

Girardi discusses his pitching plans but gives no definitive order after the first three games. He said it will depend on how strong everyone feels and where the Yankees stand in the series. He later went on to discuss changes in Alex Rodriguez, the challenge of facing Ryan Howard and the possibility of playing Hideki Matsui in the OF. Girardi offered this doozy that is probably buzzing around Japan as you read this: “You know you don’t necessarily have to keep him healthy the next two or three months. You’ve got to keep him healthy for about 10 more days, and it’s something we’ll have to think about.”

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Sabathia talked a great deal about pitching Game 1 and facing his friend from Cleveland, Cliff Lee. The two had dinner together at the Sabathia residence after the home opener this season. He also figures he has the biggest uniform in MLB history. Jimmy Rollins later came up with one Yankee who probably had more pinstripes: Cecil Fielder. Not bad, Jimmy.

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I’ll have a new post in a bit about the Phillies, who swaggered their way into the Great Hall a little while ago.

Charlie Manuel announced on a radio show this morning that Pedro Martinez will be his Game 2 starter, a move which should make for terrific theater and unbelievable amounts of second-guessing if it doesn’t work out.

Even though Cole Hamels is struggling, Manuel could have made the easy choice by going with last year’s World Series star behind Cliff Lee. Instead, he’s picking Martinez, who will hear “Who’s your Daddy?” chants all night long and made his only other postseason start in weather conditions that were 20 degrees warmer than what he figures to face in the Bronx.

Martinez is 8-4 with a 2.95 ERA in 16 career starts in the Bronx with four complete games. He is 1-2 with a 4.72 ERA in six postseason appearances against the Yankees, and is 0-2 with a 5.93 ERA in his past five.