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The Phillies and the Yankees have met once before in the 1950 World Series. Smokin’ Joe DiMaggio, Whitey Ford and the Yankees swept Robin Roberts, Ritchie Ashburn and the Phillies, in a tight series. Now the defending World Series Champion Philadelphia Phillies will square off against the New York Yankees in this years’ Fall Classic, starting on Wednesday in the Bronx.

The Phillies are back in the World Series for the second consecutive year after claiming their third consecutive NL East title with a regular season record of 93-69. They eliminated the wild card Colorado Rockies in four games of the NLDS, and then took out the Los Angeles Dodgers, for the second straight year, 4-1 in a best-of-seven series to be crowned 2009 National League Champions.

The Yankees (103-59) finished the regular season with the best record in Major League Baseball and made quick work of the Minnesota Twins sweeping the ALDS in three games, then powering their way past a very good Anaheim Angles ball club, eliminating them in six games in the ALCS.

This years odds currently have the Phillies at +500 and the Yankees at –120 to win this year’s Fall Classic.

Let’s take a peek at some of the strengths, and weaknesses for each team heading into this year’s World Series, and shed some insight to assist you in making sure your bet is a winner.

Offensively there is no argument that the Phillies have a strong lineup and finished the regular season leading the NL in runs (820), doubles (312), home runs (224), total bases (2,493), RBIs (788) and slugging percentage (.447). Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard has had another incredible year, finishing the regular season with 45 home runs. Howard has been lighting up opposing pitchers in the postseason with a .355 batting average and 14 RBIs.

The Yankees led the majors during the regular season with 915 runs, 244 of which were home runs. First baseman Mark Teixeira led the team with 39 long balls but is batting just .205 with five RBIs thus far in the playoffs. Then there is A-Rod who is dominating baseball right now. He is batting an astonishing .438 with 12 RBIs and five home runs so far this postseason. The 34-year old Yankees third baseman has reached the World Series for the first time in his 16-year and now wants the one thing that Philadelphia’s Ryan Howard has -- a World Series ring.

Next we look at pitching.

One thing for certain is the disaster that was the Phillies bullpen during the regular season, ranked 13th overall, but has come through in the postseason when it mattered most. Now they will be facing the most powerful line up in baseball and will need consistency from their 7th ranked starting rotation that has found its center with left- handed AL Cy Young Award winner, Cliff Lee, who has been magnificent in this years postseason run.

ALCS MVP C.C. Sabathia led the Yankees in wins and was tied for most in the league with 19. He is 3-0 with a 1.19 ERA in the playoffs, and has struck out 20 in 22 postseason innings, while holding opponents hitting to just .205.

Sabathia and Lee, two former Cleveland Indian teammates, will face each other in Game 1 in what should be the biggest pitching duel of the 2009 postseason. Lee is dominating going 2-0 with an 0.74 ERA in three postseason starts, while Sabathia is 1-2 with a 5.55 ERA in four career starts against the Phillies, including a loss with Milwaukee in Game 2 of last year’s NL division series. Lee is 4-4 with a 5.02 ERA in nine career starts against New York

The odds makers have the Yankees at –1 ½ favorites in Game 1 with a game total of 8.

The table for a great World Series as the teams are pretty evenly matched. My predication is Philadelphia in seven. The Phiilies take Game 1 since they saw Sabathia last year in the playoffs and beat him up pretty good, Game 2 belongs to the Yankees as they bounce back to even the series. The Phillies return to Citizens Ballpark taking two out of three to lead the series 3-2 and with New York squeaking out a win in Game 6 to force a decisive Game 7.

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