Other People's Predictions

It has been a very odd season. So making predictions in the World Series is probably useless. But everyone, including us, tries to do so. Let's look at some of them.

Some of the Experts:

20 out of 22 ESPN experts take the Yankees to win it all. RealClearSports says that it will be the most exciting Series of a generation and calls it for the Phillies in 7 as does the Wilmington News Journal. Bob Klapisch says that it will be the finest Fall Classic in a decade and claims Yankees in 6.

The Big Lead and Jesse Spector take the Yankees in 6 as well as does Sam Borden who thinks it will be because of their pitching as does Ken Rosenthal. Keith Law says Yankees in 6 and Inside Edge says Phillies in 7

Sweeny Murti will just be conflicted, though Jon Heyman, while conflicted, picks the Yankees in 7


Here are some of our guest bloggers/writers predictions:

Dad - Yankees in 6. Philly is too good to lose in less than that but the Yankees clinch at home like the ALCS

Sarah - Yankees in 4 short games so I can enjoy my Barcelona vacation!

Malter - Yanks in 7. CC will save the day!

Calter - Yanks in 7. MVP: Texty

Ian - Yankees in 6. The Yankees bullpen (besides Mariano, of course) will turn things around this series. Besides Lee, I don't see any of the Phillies starters shutting down the Yankees offense. MVP: Derek Jeter

Bryan - Phillies in 6 because A-Rod should never win a title. And because home run hitting teams will benefit just as much as the Yankees in Yankee Stadium, and the Phillies actually have 3+ starters. If Hamels gets his head straight, it'll be less games. MVP: Ryan Howard


And a few longer ones

Paul - The “Amtrak” Series (or Turnpike Tussle, or I-95 series) has the makings of a classic. Yankees fans are crazy to overlook the Phillies; their hitting is very good. The Yanks have to hit more in this series to win; an obvious point. The teams are closely matched in many areas. The one quick reason of who I think wins rests on one mismatch – the bullpen. I’ve argued this point with Andrew so many times and I think it comes to light in this World Series. The Phillies pen is flat out awful, let’s admit it. The Yankees pen is solid although has been shaky this post-season.

Over the years it seems like there are unsung heroes made in the World Series, as some players who have lousy regular season stats (ex – Mark Lemke, Graham Lloyd). This year, although he doesn’t face many batters, Damaso Marte will step it up and be able to get Utley/Howard/Ibanez (Phil Coke scares me dearly). Another thing is I’ve always kept faith in Phil Hughes for years now and I was one who did not want them to trade in the Johan deal. He’s been off this postseason but I say give him one more chance to pitch in the 7th/8th; he can have a big series.

High level Game breakdown: Game 1 – Yanks score at least 5 runs off Cliff Lee and Sabathia cruises. Game 2 – Phillies win a slugfest as A.J. and Pedro blow up. Games 3-5 – Yanks take two out 3 because of their bullpen hold and they score many runs off Philly’s pen. Game 6 – A-rod hits a walk-off 2-run HR to win the W.S. with the yanks down by 1 run

As a Yankee fan, am I worried about the Phillies? Of course, they’re a great team. But it’s hard to see the Yanks losing this year. So there you have it, Yanks in 6, Mariano Rivera as MVP.


Ari - Remarkably similar teams playing in remarkably similar parks in remarkably similar climates. Both have powerful offenses and play capable defense. The Yanks outfield arms are substantially weaker, but Tex is stronger than Howard at first. The Phils are used to playing without a DH so that will certainly play in their favor at Citizens, however the yanks will have the edge at NYS, as they have a true DH in Godzilla. The Yanks also get to play 4 potential games in NYS to 3 in Citizens - this cannot be overlooked.


I think this truly comes down to the rotations, as it so often does in playoff baseball. The starters behind Cliff Lee are simply terrible. Hamels has not shown his 2008 form in 2008, and Joe Blanton cannot be taken seriously, and Pedro, really? Let's see how Lee fares against the patient and powerful Yankee lineup - he won't have the benefit of the pitchers spot as he did in the previous playoff rounds. The Yanks, on the other hand, finally seem to have a 1-2-3 to get them to the promise land. CC has been as advertised. Burnett is erratic, but is capable of throwing lights out, and Andy is nearly always dandy in the playoffs.

I think the combination of the Yankee's starters, DH in 4 of the 7 potential games, and Mariano gets them over the top here. The Phillies won't repeat. Yanks in 6. As Craig Carton would say, "MET FANNNNNs FOR THE YANKEEEEESSSSS!"