My Morning in Exile

Let’s put the comments section to good use this afternoon: use this thread to post your World Series prediction. No need for heavy analysis. I want (a) your winner; and (b) a short statement with your reasons why. I won’t hold you to Twitter length, but I’m definitely looking for Twitter spirit: short, pithy, decisive and, for bonus points, funny. I’ll start: Yankees in six. Why? Would you like me to tell you the little story of right-hand/left-hand? The story of good and evil? H-A-T-E! It is with this left hand that the Yankees will strike the blow that will lay the city of brotherly love low.

Now you go (no, you don’t have to be as obtuse as me). While you’re thinking:

  • I ain’t pass the bar but i know a little bit; enough that Jay-Z can’t just book a show in Ohio and split. We’ll see how smart you are when the lawsuit comes. I got 99 problems but your lame show with Alicia Keys ain’t one.
  • Like Len said in the comments, when it comes to the McCourt divorce saga, you all get the Reader’s Digest version, NBC gets the Highlights for Children version. In this instance, this is less a maturity thing than an attention span thing. Oh, and the predictions comment thread was Len’s idea too, so mad props to Len today.
  • Gary Matthews, Jr. doesn’t want to be in Anaheim anymore. I love it when everyone can agree on things.
  • The inevitable mayoral wager story. If Columbus had a team playing for a championship, our mayor would be forced to wager our city’s passive but polite mediocrity, because we don’t have much else. OK, maybe some White Castles and kinda bad pizza.
  • Some more on the New York-Philly trash talk.
  • If the Rockies had won the NL and the NL had won the All-Star Game, we would be in a world of sh*t right now.

  • 48 Comments
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    G2
    14 years ago

    As A Phillies fan- I say Yanks in 6 because Cole Hamels will whine at the first bad call and then blow up.  If he’s undergone hypnosis and will no longer wilt at the first sign of adversity, then Phillies in 5

    John
    14 years ago

    New York 2, Philly 2, Cleveland 3

    I mean, with CC/Lee guaranteed to start 3 games, how can they not pull it off? Especially if Francisco hits a late inning HR.

    Randy
    14 years ago

    Yanks in 3. (Jeter will steal the 4th game.)

    matt
    14 years ago

    Phils in 7.
    They’re getting no respect at all, but Lee has been every bit as good as Sabathia, the lineup is just as stacked, and the Yanks didn’t exactly bulldoze the competition this postseason.  The Twins and Angels made all kinds of mistakes that the Phillies will not.

    YankeesfanLen
    14 years ago

    I still have Yankees in 5 (ok, 6 if Joba The New Big Toad, gets in at all). No disrespect (much) to Phine Phillies Phans, however they won 10 less games in the Legume League and the Dodgers were more than willing to give it away.
    And, as mentioned in the illustrious Post by an interviwee, Yuengling swilling is produced in Pottsville PA (easterPA version of Steel City) which is 97 miles from Philly and 142 miles from the Bronx.  Although even Hal wasnted “no light beer” in Yankees Clubhouse celebration Woulda thought that would be Hank.
    BTW, Reggie whispered in ARod’s (leave him alone)ear the secret of 77. Dan Brown novel in 5 years,

    Will
    14 years ago

    Why do you hate Denver? Autumn storms can happen in NYC and Philly, too. If the season ended at a reasonable time, this wouldn’t be an issue. Starting the World Series in late October is asking for trouble in any of the northern non-roofed ballparks in the Majors.

    KR
    14 years ago

    I clicked on the “kinda bad Columbus pizza” link hoping to see a reference to Donato’s; I was not disappointed.

    Phillies in 5, but that’s more wishful thinking than an actual prediction.

    Craig Calcaterra
    14 years ago

    Will—there’s a difference bwetween a NY autumn storm and 10-18 inches of snow and blowing, blizzard condidtions, which is what’s happening in Denver today.

    I’m not suggesting that anyone take the franchise away, but the fact is, if Game 1 were going to happen in Denver today, people would be talking about it as though the world were ending.

    Alex Poterack
    14 years ago

    Yankees in 5.  I hate the Yankees, but they had the best team in the game this year, and there’s also the AL-superiority thing (and I’m an NL guy, so it’s not something I’m happy about, it’s just the facts).  That said, I think the Phillies have a slight edge as far as position players are concerned, and their pitching isn’t too shabby, either, but the Yankees have a definite bullpen advantage, and a rotation of CC, Burnett, Pettite is just damn hard to beat.

    That said, go Phillies!

    Adam
    14 years ago

    Yanks in 6.  Because putting the word “smug” and “Phillies fan” in a sentence is too much cognitive dissonance for me.

    MJ
    14 years ago

    Now you go (no, you don’t have to be as obtuse as me). While you’re thinking:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IuBHzJ5LrXE

    <3 family guy

    I’m waffling between Yanks in 5 or 6, depending on the weather.  If the Yanks do a 3 man rotation throughout and no one shits the bed, I like the Yanks over the Phillies (hitting even, but pitching advantage to the Yanks).

    Mode:Theif and Lair
    14 years ago

    Winner (short,decisive): Me
    Why? (pithy): I get to watch my team play 4 or more games. (really, I will be happy if my team wins, sad if they lose, but mostly I am not looking forward to 4 months without games)

    (funny?) Two muffins are in an oven. The first muffin says to the second muffin “Man it’s hot in here.”  The second muffin looks over and says “Ahh, a talking muffin”

    Beanster
    14 years ago

    Yanks in a tense, boisterous, profanity-laced 6. 

    Reason #1 = Ryan Howard .653 OPS vs. LHP, which makes him slightly worse than David Eckstein or Kaz Matsui.

    Reason #2 = Brad Lidge.  His GB% is under 40% and he has at least 4.1 BB/G since 2005.  If you throw out 2008 as the obvious outlier, his 2009 peripherals are surprisingly not that bad compared to his career averages other than a sharp drop in K/9.

    Here’s his ERA by month vs. Kyle Farnsworth, who at least had 2 good months:

    APR 7.27 – 9.95
    MAY 7.98 – 0.00
    JUN 6.75 – 6.35
    JUL 5.91 – NA
    AUG 6.75 – 10.80
    SEP 9.00 – 2.00

    Wes
    14 years ago

    The Yankees are wonderful, but the Phillies know something they don’t know: they are not (that) left-handed.

    http://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/split.cgi?t=b&team=PHI&year=2009

    Phillies in 7.

    Craig Calcaterra
    14 years ago

    I bow to both Wes’ movie reference and his analysis. I would have bet my children that their lefty-righty split was more pronounced than that.

    John_Michael
    14 years ago

    Yankees win in six
    Kate Hudson for M.V.P.
    Tabloid writers’ block

    Beanster
    14 years ago

    Sorry about the analysis but I was expecting Lidge to be at least a little better than “the Mop” and had to share…

    Mike Petry
    14 years ago

    So the mayor didn’t have a bet last year with a New York/New Jersey mayor for the MLS cup last year?

    Simon DelMonte
    14 years ago

    Yankees in 7.

    The two teams are pretty evenly matched at the plate right now, and I think that the Yankees’ edge on starting pitching is not as big as everyone thinks, since Burnett is hit and miss.  The one place the Yanks dominate is in the bullpen, and only if Girardi doesn’t overmanage.  Which he might in Philly, since there is no DH. 

    This makes me think that we could see a “home team wins” sort of series, even when CC pitches in Philly.

    Of course, if tonight’s game is rained out, I think that changes everything and that the Phils could sneak by.

    Dan Friedman
    14 years ago

    I predict… a tie! Yanks and Phils each win 3, and the umpiring crew explodes in a fiery cauldron of indecision in game 7, resulting in the halting of play with the score tied.

    Jack Marshall
    14 years ago

    Phillies in 5. Because it will drive NY crazy…because AJ Burnett is unreliable, Andy Pettite is old and CC is due for a lousy game…because Joba and Hughes will choke…because Pedro will get his last hurrah…but mostly because I sacrificed a goat to the Baseball Gods last night, and they owe me for letting Lou Piniella blindly spear Jerry Remy’s fly on the first bounce in 1978.

    Chris Simonds
    14 years ago

    Phillies. Because CC is matched by Cliff Lee, because it is always 50-50 whether Burnett pitches well, because Andy Pettitte could only go 6 1/3 against an Angels lineup only half of which showed up to play so he’ll barely last 5 against Ryan Howard et al, because Pedro has something to prove – but most of all because Jimmie Rollins said so.

    Steve Stein
    14 years ago

    Ooh, it’s the devastating right and Hate is hurt, he’s down. Left-Hand Hate K.O.ed by The City of Brotherly Love.  Phils in 6.  Pedro wins games 2 and 6.

    Jack Marshall
    14 years ago

    Christ, Chris! Where have you been all my life?

    Steve Stein
    14 years ago

    I’ll add that I was expecting this match-up in ‘64 but, uh, something happened.

    John Willumsen
    14 years ago

    Yankees in 5, A.J. Burnett takes the loss.  CC goes 8 innings, gives up 2 runs tonight, Cliff goes 5 innings, gives up 5 runs, but sparkles in the first 3 innings.

    Drew
    14 years ago

    Yanks in 6.  Because they’re a substantially better team.  Because as good as the Phillies lineup is (and they’re strong), the Yankees still managed to score nearly 100 more runs this season.  Because if you believe in crazy stuff like third order wins, the Yankees were 16 games better than the Phils this year, widening the already substantial gap in wins.  But mostly because I’m a Mets fan living outside Philadelphia.  If I was still living in NYC, I’d give you a laundry list of reasons the Phils would win instead (though I wouldn’t believe it).

    Chris Simonds
    14 years ago

    Jack, I guess great minds do run on parallel tracks. I like goats though, so I wouldn’t sacrifice one, even to see the Yankees lose.

    MooseinOhio
    14 years ago

    Craig –

    Shocked you don’t think the candy Buckeyes are a worthy wager item – must be that WV upbringing to not think all think Buckeyes are priceless.

    As a former resident of Columbus for 17 years (hard for me to believe) I agree that the city is limited in the swag it has to offer for such wagers.  However a large pizza from Adriatico’s, a Thurman Burger in addition to the Sliders, a case of bahama mama’s from Schmidt’s, ice cream from Jeni’s and a few Anthony Thomas Buckeyes would be a decent package. 

    If that wasn’t enough, Mayor Coleman could always throw in a few originals from James Thurber.

    Pete Toms
    14 years ago

    Yankees in 6.  Why?  Because baseball is better when the Yanks are on top.  You either love em or hate em, but nobody is on the fence.

    Jack Marshall
    14 years ago

    Chris,if you don’t love the goat, the sacrifice won’t work. That’s why I couldn’t sacrifice my first choice, my next door Yankee fan next-door neighbor. Actually, Heidi went willingly. She hated the Yankees almost as much as she hates the Cubs.

    James
    14 years ago

    Phillies in 30 days.  Mind you they will only have played one game, but in that one game – Cliff Lee will shut out the Yankees.

    lar
    14 years ago

    I guess I’ll say Yankees in five, and A-Rod gets robbed of the Series MVP.

    I honestly think the Phils have a better chance than that (they did win the Series last year, they do have a great team, etc), but that seems to be how things are going to roll this October.

    Chris Simonds
    14 years ago

    Jack – Hmmm, Same thoughts occurred to me – that if I sacrificed some people I know that I’d love to usher into the next life, where’s the sacrifice. However, I now have a question. If, as you say, the gods owe you, what did you need the sacrifice for? Wouldn’t a quick reminder do?

    DonCoburleone
    14 years ago

    Phillies win in 6.  They are clutch. Philly has 4 Derek Jeter’s on their team while the Yanks only have 1.

    Mike Dark
    14 years ago

    Phillies in 6. 

    Why?
    1. Although Jimmy Rollins is always right, 5 seems a little too easy. 
    b. Carsten Sabathia and Allan Burnett? Not scared, they’ve been beat by the Phils before.
    Lastly. One part severe NL homerism, one part pathalogical hatred of the Yanks, a dash of hope and three parts vodka.

    Hojo
    14 years ago

    Phillies in six.

    Reason: Curse of A-Rod
    Real reason: Lee > CC, Hamels > Burnett

    Carroll
    14 years ago

    Yankees. Phillies. Yankees. Phillies. Phillies. Yankees. Phillies.

    I’m an NL partisan, but primarily rooting for a seven game series.

    BobbyChez
    14 years ago

    Let’s compare the #1 starters:

    Cliff Lee vs. the AL (from earlier this year) = 7-9 with a 3.14 ERA.
    CC Sabathia vs the NL (from the end of last year) = 11-2 1.65 ERA.

    ‘Nuff said, advantage Yankees.

    The Yanks in 6, because they want to win this one in their new home and you gotta get the Philly fans’ hopes up a bit, just to crush them later on.

    Jason B
    14 years ago

    Blue Jays in six!!  Alomar + Molitor + Carter + Olerud + Rickey being Ricky > Kruk + Dykstra + Daulton. 

    And Guzman + Stewart + Stottlemyre + Hentgen + Leiter > Schilling + Mulholland + other assorted rabble.

    Aaaahhhh, 1993.

    TC
    14 years ago

    Phillies in 7, because beating the Yankees is so much more satisfying than beating the Rays, and because, though I am a Phillies’ fan, I, like you, true believers, want as much baseball as I can possibly have.  So even if it means a series of heart attacks from which I may never recover, seven games is what I expect, with extra innings to boot, at least one slugfest and one pitching duel, insane uses of bullpens and benches from both dugouts, Ryan Howard getting one significant hit off a lefty, Derek Jeter being insufferably always-getting-a-hit, and so on.  I hope to, at least once, pull my hair out as Charlie Manuel intentionally walks A-Rod with the bases empty. 

    I could go on like this for a while.  In some ways, I’m happy just to be here.  It vindicates last year as a non-fluke.  On the other hand, I feel like last year I was eating the most delicious cake I had ever had, and now I’m being offered one that smells even better.  I want that cake.  Also a parade.  Who doesn’t love a parade?

    YankeesfanLen
    14 years ago

    Anyone notice the subtle roster change.  Joe Einstein doesn’t want to forget and have Guzman run for ARod again.
    And no one wants Jorge to pout cause Cervelli is on the grounds.
    And Bruney will no doubt be able to pitch to one hitter instead of Marte.
    And Hinske will homer when Swisholicious runs out of gas.
    Better than a string around your finger while looking at 10,412 pages of stats.

    Wooden U. Lykteneau
    14 years ago

    Joe Buck will make a lame reference to Tim McCarver’s CD, prompting an equally clever producer to play a sound clip. Meanwhile, a despondent man in a small one-room apartment, alone with just a gun, his dog, and a TV will hear it and as his dog brays at Tim’s singing, the man will slip into the sweet hereafter—using the hound’s howl to muffle the shot.

    Jason B
    14 years ago

    Dunno about the whole series, but as far as game one goes, I think Cliff Lee will be mostly unhittable, Chase Utley may hit a couple o’ taters off of an otherwise sharp CC, and the Yankees bullpen will look shaky and unreliable.

    Not sure quite how I feel about game two.  I’ll know more in the morning…

    Craig Calcaterra
    14 years ago

    Jason—if you want I can pre-date that comment for extra prescience . . .

    Michael
    14 years ago

    Craig – you forget, Columbus IS playing for a championship! (Well, if the Crew gets through the playoffs…) Quite frankly, I’m surprised you don’t have tickets in the Nordecke section.

    Your mayor should get ready to put up something at least as valuable as coffee and salmon, because that’s what Seattle will likely offer.

    smsetnor
    14 years ago

    Had too much to do today to send in my prediction earlier.  My prediction… Haiku style:

    In frigid cold weather
    The Phillies will win in six
    fans to blame ARod

    scatterbrian
    14 years ago

    Yanks ride elder statesmen Jeter, Mo, Pettitte and Posada, beat Lee twice, and win in six.