PRELIMINARY ROUND
Series #154
2008 Philadelphia Phillies (92-70) vs 1983 New York Yankees (91-71)
Only the third World Championship in franchise history, the 2008 Phillies will always be remembered for their intense competitiveness and grit that made them so good. Players in the middle of the infield like Chase Utley and Jimmy Rollins were at the core of the success manager Charlie Manuel and his club had. Utley had a 9.0 WAR hitting 33 home runs and driving in 104 runs while scoring 113. He had a .915 OPS to lead the team and played literally like there was no tomorrow. Rollins stole 47 bases and had 38 doubles with 9 triples, 11 homers, and 243 total bases. He was an excellent baserunner and worked well with Utley on the DP. Ryan Howard was the hammer at first base hitting 48 home runs with 146 RBI with 105 runs, all while striking out 199 times. Howard was the best slugger of his era and his left handed power wing was as pretty as it gets. Pedro Feliz filled in at third and stayed most invisible with an 82 OPS+ and 14 home runs. His glove did bring good range for the position. Pat Burrell swung a big bat with 33 home runs and 86 RBI with 33 doubles and a .875 OPS. Shane Victorino made many highlight reel catches in center but also hit .293 with 36 steals and 102 runs making his a vital part of the team. Jayson Werth had 24 mostly clutch home runs with 20 steals of his own and an .861 OPS. Geof Jenkins had 16 doubles off the bench while Greg Dobbs hit .301 in limited backup third base duty. Carlos Ruiz was the everyday catcher hitting only .219 with 70 hits but his defense made up for his lack of hitting. Chris Cote was his marginal backup hitting .263, The Phils could really run you off the field and had the bats of Werth, Howard, and Burrell to make the extra baserunners count. Cole Hamels found himself starting In a lot of big games at 24 years old and came out as one of the fans favorites. The lefty had a 3.09 ERA and very good command winning 14 games with 227 innings. Hamels struck out 7.8 per nine and was a fierce competitor. On the other end of the spectrum was 45 year old Jamie Moyer who went 16-7 with a 3.71 ERA and a worse FIP. As the season wore on, Moyer became less and less trusted but obviously had the experience to win. Brett Myers was 10-13 with a 4.55 mark and also threw some important innings. Myers was also a strikeout pitcher but with less control and command. Kyle Jendrick and Adam Eaton were poor as possible fourth starters each with ERA's north of 5. Both of them also had WHIPS over 6 and likely can be counted on in this series. Joe Blanton did decent work in 13 starts with a 4.20 ERA not losing a single game and allowing only 10 home runs. It is a testament that the Phillies were able to win so much with a lack of real strong starting pitching. A big part of that was that the pen was so strong. Brad Lidge was at his best saving 41 games with a 1.95 ERA and striking out 11.9 per nine innings; he was lights out. Chad Durbin and Ryan Madson were great setup options with JC Romero and Clay Condrey adding to the depth for no weak links on the back end. Bottom line is these Phillies found a way to be champions and win back to back pennants, however their battle with the Billy Martin lead Yankees should be fascinating.
George Steinbrenner wasn’t going to give the Yankees a single season off of the intense expectations that came with the pinstripes and the 1983 team was lead by Billy Martin to 91 wins, still well short of the top. The Yanks had a number of veterans in the lineup but the shadow of one Reggie Jackson was gone. Into the shadow was the multiskilled Dave Winfield. Winfield drove in 116 runs and scored 99 as he slugged .513 with a 138 OPS+ making him a feared hitter across the league. Don Baylor was the regular DH and he nailed 21 home runs with 85 RBI pairing nicely with Winfield and even hitting a robust .303 with only 53 strikeouts. Steve Kemp hit .241 in right field with 49 RBI but wasn’t the typical right fielder a contender needed. Jerry Mumphrey split time in center with Oscar Gamble. Gamble hit .261 and Mumphrey was right there at .262 as neither player could really step up to win the job. Ken Griffey played at third with a .792 OPS and a .355 OBP. Griffey still played the game the right way but was battling some injuries and was being pushed by a 22 year old rookie named Don Mattingly. Roy Smalley played third and hit .275 with 24 doubles and 62 RBI. Smalley was a good compliment to Willie Randolph who was a .279 hitter with a .708 OPS and 12 steals. Willie only played in 104 games due to his own injury concerns. Butch Wynegar hit .296 at catcher with 42 RBI but shared duty with Rick Cerone. Wynegar in the long run proved the much better hitter and regular starter. At third base remained 38 year old Graig Nettles who still had the instincts of a cat at the hot corner. Nettles hit 20 home runs hitting .266 with 75 RBI and a 119 OPS+. Andre Robertsone was the utility infielder hitting .248 off the bench while Lou Piniella and Omar Moreno saw limited action but were part of a very good Yankee bench. At 32 years old, Ron Guidry lead the rotation with 21 wins and a 3.42 ERA. Guidry had 3 shutouts and 21 complete games but scouts could see he was still good, but maybe not great. Shane Rawley threw 238 innings with a 3.78 ERA in 33 starts. He proved quite reliable for Martin and the team that primarily used three starters and a mix for the 4th. Dave Righetti was the third man with 217 innings and a 3.44 mark with a 1.20 WHIP. Righetti had that extra something and also lead the team in strikeouts with 164; when he was on he was very good. Bob Shirley was hit hard in 17 starts but Ray Fontenot was 8-2 in 97 innings with a 3.33 ERA. Jay Howell won only one of his 12 starts to become an after thought. Rich Gossage was still a force as the team closer in his last season in pinstripes. The Goose saved 22 games and won 13 others striking out 90 in 87 innings of work. George Frazier was a decent setup man who got 8 saves of his own, but after that the Yankee pen had very little. Dale Murray and 38 year old Rudy May struggled while Dolyle Alexander was another name Martin had little use for. We will see if New York can do anything against the champion Phils, but looking at the team records, there actually isnt very much to separate these two teams.
Citizens Bank Park
Partly cloudy 57
1983 Yankees.....................10
2008 Phillies........................5
WP: D. Righetti (1-0) LP: C. Hamels (0-1)
HR: K. Griffey (1), R. Smalley (1)
POG: Roy Smalley
1983 Yankees Lead Series 1-0
The 1983 Yankees scored seven in the second inning knocking Cole Hamel out of the game and setting themselves up for a 13 hit , 10 run win in game one. Ryan Howard went 3-4 with 2 RBI for the home team but home runs by Ken Griffey and Roy Smalley were enough to get Dave Righetti the win. Smalley drove in three and Righetti himself had a two run double to add to the barrage. A tough way to start for the champion Phillies.
Game 2 At Citizens Bank Park
Clear 57
1983 Yankees...................3
2008 Phillies.....................4
WP: S. Eyre (1-0) LP: G. Frazier (0-1) S: B. Lidge (1)
HR: D. Mattingly (1), K. Griffey (3), J. Werth (1)
POG: Chase Utley
Series Tied At 1
Chase Utley hit a big two run double off of George Frazier in the bottom of the 8th to bring the Phillies into the lead and Brad Lidge did his part to close the door. Utley was 3-4 and Jason Werth drove in another two runs with a home run. Young Don Mattingly hit a two run home run to put the Yankees up in the 7th but the Phillies responded.
Game 3 At Yankee Stadium
61 Clear
2008 Phillies................1
1983 Yankees..............4
WP: J. Howell (1-0) LP: J. Moyer (0-1) S : R. Gossage (1)
HR: D. Baylor (1)
POG: Jay Howell
1983 Yankees Lead Series 2-1
The Phillies had 11 hits but left 10 men on base and could not break through against New York pitching. Jay Howell went 8 innings striking out 8 before Goose Gossage closed the ninth. Don Baylor hit a long two run home run in the very first inning off a Jamie Moyer breaking ball and that is all the home team would need. The champion Phillies are in for quite a fight in this series.
Game 4 At Yankee Stadium
Clear 58
2008 Phillies...............2
1983 Yankees.............6
WP: J. Montefusco (1-0) LP: J. Blanton (0-1)
HR: J. Werth (2), P. Burrell (1), B. Wynegar (1)
POG: John Montefusco
1983 Yankees Lead Series 3-1
The Yankees did it again coming from behind late and breaking the game open with four runs in the seventh inning capped by a bases clearing double by Graig Nettles. John Montefusco went the full nine for the win striking out six and allowing six hits and two runs as the Bronx is burning and Billy Martin has his team on the cusp of the upset.
Game 5 At Yankee Stadium
Clear 51
2008 Phillies...................0
1983 Yankees.................4
WP: D. Righetti (2-0) LP: C. Hamels (0-2)
HR: L. Piniella (1), K. Griffey (3), R. Smalley (2)
POG: Dave Righetti
And just like that the door slams shut at Yankee Stadium and the Phillies are finished. Dave Righetti pitched seven scoreless inning striking out an impressive 10 before leaving with a 4 run lead. The long ball came through for New York against Cole Hamels as the bombers hit three, all solo shots, but two of them came in the 8th. Billy Martin and his team were just flat better in the end.
1983 New Yankees Win Series 4 Games To 1
Series MVP:
Ken Griffey
(.381, 3 HR, 5 RBI, 1 2B, 5 R, .857 SLG)