Ryght Now

Game 5

Phillies 8, Yankees 6

Monday, November 2, 2009 — 7:57 PM (ET) at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

WP: Cliff Lee (2-0)  LP: A. J. Burnett (1-1)  SV: Ryan Madson (1)
HRs:  PHI — Chase Utley 2 (5), Raul Ibanez (1)

The Yankees replaced Melky Cabrera on their postseason roster with Ramiro Pena due to his injury in Game 4, while Brett Gardner took Cabrera’s place in center field.[43] The Yankees scored first in the first inning, with a Johnny Damon reaching base with a single and then scoring on a two-out double by Alex Rodriguez. The Phillies responded in the bottom of the inning with a single by Jimmy Rollins, Shane Victorino reaching after being hit by a pitch, and finally a three-run home run by Chase Utley to take the lead. The Phillies added to their lead in the third inning with Chase Utley and Ryan Howard drawing walks followed by RBI singles by Jayson Werth and Raul Ibanez. A. J. Burnett was relieved by David Robertson with no outs in the inning who allowed another run to score on a Carlos Ruiz ground out before the inning was over.

Robertson held the Phillies scoreless for a second inning in the fourth. Jorge Posada entered as a pinch hitter the fifth inning for Jose Molina and ground out. Eric Hinske then pinch hit for Robertson and walked, advanced to third on a Derek Jeter single, and scored on a ground out by Johnny Damon. Alfredo Aceves entered as the new Yankee pitcher in the bottom of the fifth. The first batter he faced, Jayson Werth, hit a deep drive to center field but it was caught for an out by Brett Gardner who collided into the outfield wall to complete the play. Aceves completed the inning without a run scoring, inducing ground outs from Raul Ibanez and Carlos Ruiz. Phil Coke relieved Aceves in the seventh inning and helped two Phillies players tie World Series records. First, Chase Utley tied Reggie Jackson’s record for most home runs in a World Series with a solo home run, his fifth of the series. Coke then struck out Ryan Howard, Howard’s 12th strikeout for the series, tying Willie Wilson’s record for most strikeouts in a World Series. Finally, Coke was driven from the game after allowing another solo home run, this time to Raul Ibanez, and was relieved by Phil Hughes.

Shane Victorino was replaced defensively in the eighth inning by Ben Francisco. Phillies starter Cliff Lee was driven from the game after allowing a single to Johnny Damon followed by a double for Mark Teixeira and a double by Alex Rodriguez that scored both runners. Chan Ho Park relieved Lee and induced a ground out from Nick Swisher which advanced Rodriguez to third base who scored on a sacrifice fly by Robinson Cano. Ryan Madson entered in the ninth to close the game, allowing a double to Jorge Posada and a single to Hideki Matsui without recording an out. Batting with men on first and third base Derek Jeter grounded into a double play, allowing Posada to score but emptying the bases. Johnny Damon would single to bring Mark Teixeira to bat as the potential tying run, but Madson struck Teixeira out to record his first World Series save.

Game 4

New York Yankees – 7, Philadelphia Phillies – 4

Sunday, November 1, 2009 — 8:20 PM (ET) at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

WP: Joba Chamberlain (1–0)  LP: Brad Lidge (0–1)  SV: Mariano Rivera (2)
HRs:  PHI – Chase Utley (3), Pedro Feliz (1)

Derek Jeter led the game off with a single and advanced to third base on a double by Johnny Damon. Jeter scored via a Mark Teixeira ground out and Alex Rodriguez was hit by a pitch. Rodriguez was hit twice the night before and the umpires issued warnings to both benches.  Jorge Posada then added to the Yankees lead that inning with a sacrifice fly. The Phillies answered quickly, scoring a run on successive doubles by Shane Victorino and Chase Utley in the bottom of the first. Sabathia would intentionally walk Jayson Werth, but escaped the inning without further scoring. The Phillies tied the game in the bottom of the fourth as Ryan Howard singled, stole second, and scored on a single by Pedro Feliz. However, instant replay of the Howard’s slide showed that he did not touch home plate.

Nick Swisher walked to lead off the fifth inning and advanced to second on a Melky Cabrera single. Swisher regained the Yankee lead, scoring on a single by Derek Jeter, and Cabrera added to it scoring a run off of a Johnny Damon single. Brett Gardner replaced Melky Cabrera in center field as a defensive substitution in the bottom of the sixth inning after Cabrera left the game due to a hamstring injury. Chan Ho Park relieved Blanton in the seventh and held the Yankees scoreless in that inning. Chase Utley hit his third solo home run of the series in the bottom of the seventh with two outs, bringing the game to 4–3 and chasing Sabathia from the game. Dámaso Marté relieved Sabathia and got the final out of the seventh without further scoring.

Ryan Madson relieved Park in the eighth and allowed a walk and a single but held the Yankees scoreless. Joba Chamberlain replaced Marte in the bottom of the inning. He struck out the first two batters he faced but allowed a game-tying home run to Pedro Feliz before closing the inning. Brad Lidge came into the game in the ninth and gave up a two-out single to Damon. Then, with Mark Teixeira batting, Damon stole second and advanced to third as the base was uncovered due to a defensive shift against Teixeira. Some believed that Damon’s play made Lidge avoid throwing his best pitch—a slider that broke down into the dirt—as that would risk a wild pitch.

Teixeira was then hit by a pitch and Alex Rodriguez put the Yankees ahead with a double to left field, scoring Damon. Posada added to that lead with a single which scored Teixeira and Rodriguez. Mariano Rivera entered in the bottom of the ninth and saved the game for the Yankees on eight pitches for his second save of the series.

Game 3

New York Yankees – 8, Philadelphia Phillies – 5

Saturday, October 31, 2009 — 7:57 PM (1:20 rain delay) (ET) at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

WP: Andy Pettitte (1–0)  LP: Cole Hamels (0–1)
HRs:  NYY – Alex Rodriguez (1), Nick Swisher (1), Hideki Matsui (2)  PHI – Jayson Werth 2 (2), Carlos Ruiz (1)

Following a rain delay of almost 80 minutes, the Phillies struck first in the bottom of the second inning, with Jayson Werth’s lead-off solo homer followed by a bases-loaded walk and a sac fly to make it 3–0. Following Mark Teixeira’s walk in the top of the fourth inning, Alex Rodriguez hit a deep ball down the right field line. It was originally ruled a double and Mark Teixeira held at third base. The play was reviewed using MLB instant replay and the ball was ruled a two-run home run, giving Rodriguez his first World Series hit. This was the first home run reviewed by instant replay in postseason play. Specifically, the ball hit a camera owned by FOX and MLB which extended slightly over the right field wall. The camera was moved back for Game 4 such that its lens was in line with the wall. Coincidentally, Alex Rodriguez also had the first regular season home run reviewed by replay.

Nick Swisher opened the top of the fifth inning with a double and scored on a single to center field by Andy Pettitte. This was Pettitte’s first career postseason RBI and the first RBI by a Yankees pitcher in a World Series since Jim Bouton in 1964. Derek Jeter followed Pettitte with another single, and both runners scored on a two-run double by Johnny Damon. Cole Hamels then walked Mark Teixeira and was relieved by J. A. Happ. Happ escaped the fifth without allowing further scoring, but Nick Swisher added to the Yankees lead with a solo home run off of Happ in the sixth. Werth hit his second solo home run of the game leading off the bottom of the sixth to close the Yankees lead to 6–4, the second Phillies player to hit multiple home runs in this World Series.

Chad Durbin relieved Happ in the top of the seventh. He walked Johnny Damon who then stole second base. Alex Rodriguez was hit by a pitch and Damon scored on a single by Jorge Posada. Joba Chamberlain relieved Pettitte in the bottom of the seventh and retired the side in order. Brett Myers retired the first two batters in the top of the eighth, but Hideki Matsui then hit a solo home run pinch hitting for Chamberlain. This was the 28th pinch-hit home run in World Series history. Phil Hughes pitched a third of an inning in the bottom of the ninth and allowed a solo home run to Carlos Ruiz before being relieved by Mariano Rivera. Rivera closed out the game, throwing just five pitches to record the final two outs. This game was Pettitte’s 17th career postseason win, extending his MLB record.