Verrrry bored. (again, a few things are edited out.)
Joe Morgan
(11:03 AM)
I think this is going to be the best World Series we've seen in a long time.
Fans of teams that were in the World Series the past couple of years: HEY. EAST COAST BIAS!!!!
Also, the 2001 World Series was one of the best of all time. The 2002 World Series was awesome. The 2005 World Series was about as great as a four-game sweep could be. "A long time," not really.
We have two excellent teams, the two best teams in baseball. They are similar from an offensive standpoint. They can score a lot of runs. I think the Yankees starting pitching is a little stronger, not much, but a little. That may be the difference. We all know that the Yankees' closer is better,
Brad Lidge: ;_;
but everything else is pretty similar.
Steve (Middletown, CT)
Hey Joe, what do you think has changed to make A-Rod a postseason force? Do you think it was just random fluctuation over a small sample size that made previous playoff performances an aberration or has something suddenly clicked for him?
This is clearly Joebait.
Joe Morgan
(11:05 AM)
Part of it is the small sample size before. Remember when he played with Seattle, he did well in the playoffs. When he got to New York, he's only been in the playoffs a few times. Now, he's more relaxed and he's not trying as hard. Before, he was forcing it and trying to make things happen.
Ehhhhh... half a point for this one.
Nick (Washington UK)
Imagining that the Yankees are 1 run behind going into their half of the 9th inning and that Brad Lidge pitches every time. What is the series outcome?
If I may quote John Sterling, THUUHHHHHH YANKEEEEES WINNN!!! Also, let's say Brad Lidge blew two saves in a row. I really don't think Charlie Manuel, even though he is loyal to a fault, would send him out the third time with a one-run lead. Sure, they didn't really have anyone else, but it's obvious Lidge couldn't do it.
Joe Morgan
(11:07 AM)
When Lidge throws strikes and gets ahead of hitters and forces them to chase his pitches out of the strike zone, he'll be effective against anyone. His problem this season was not getting ahead of hitters. If he throws strikes early in the count, he'll be successful. The reason Rivera is successful is he works ahead of the hitters and throws strikes. If Lidge can not close games, then Philadelphia is in trouble, they don't have anyone else.
Yeah, he didn't really answer the question. At all.
Casey (Santa Clarita, CA)
Joe, What is the difference between the Pedro today and the Pedro of yesterday and would you give him the edge against Petite?
I understand not being able to get "Pettitte" right all the time, especially if you're not necessarily a Yankee fan. Hell, I love the guy, but you'll probably see me spell it "Pettite" or "Petitte" a few times on this blog. I actually have to think about how to spell it right. But Petite? That just makes me cry.
Joe Morgan
(11:09 AM)
Obviously, the velocity is the difference. The Pedro who was winning Cy Youngs was throwing 95+ and had the changeups to go with it. Now his velocity is down and he throws his curveball more. Pedro can be effective. If he can throw his curveball for strikes, he can do well. The Yankees are a fastball hitting team. If you can throw curveballs, you can keep them off balance.
I can't comment on the difference between Pedro 2000 and Pedro 2009 but I'm sure the really sabermetrically-inclined can, and I'm sure this is very very wrong.
Zack (Toledo)
what does it mean for NYC that the Yankees are back in the world series?
This is a dumb question.
Joe Morgan
(11:11 AM)
New York revels in the success of the Yankees, far more so than they do the Mets.
Well, no. There are still tons of Mets fans out there. They really haven't had much to celebrate since 2006, though. I can't even imagine being a Met fan... the things that team has put you through since Game 6 of the 2006 NLCS must just about kill you.
It just kinds of punctuates what New York thinks anyway, that they're the center of the world.
Uh, thanks, Joe.
And the Yankees' success proves that. New York is alive. They're having a big pep rally in the middle of Times Square.
I saw the pep rally. It was sort of pathetic. :(
Casey (Santa Clarita, CA)
Joe, If the Phillies have some hits from their the bottom of their lineup I think they could win this thing because the middle of their lineup is better than the Yankees. Your thoughts?
Yankees lineup OPS (I'm assuming Jeter-Damon-Tex-ARod-Matsui-Posada-Cano-Swisher-Melky): .871, .854, .948, .933, .876, .885, .871, .869, .752 (hello outlier)
Phillies lineup OPS (I'm assuming Rollins-Victorino-Utley-Howard-Werth-Ibanez-Francisco-Feliz-Ruiz, because that's what they used in Game 1 of the WS): .719 (holy crap!), .803, .905, .931, .879, .899, .843 (in 37 games), .694, .780
I know I make a big deal about how the middle of the Philly lineup was the scariest thing in baseball or whatever, but hmm, looking at it, it's pretty even. That might just be my general kneejerk reaction; as a Yankee fan trying to be pretty fair, I generally don't want to overrate the Yankees in any way. They really were good this year though, heh. Also, generally, if teams are getting hits from the bottom of their lineups, which are generally the crappier hitters, it's a very good sign.
Joe Morgan
(11:16 AM)
The Phillies can definitely win the World Series. There's no doubt about that. But, as you're saying, you need some players to perform that you're not counting on. For the Phillies, I think that guy is Carlos Ruiz. He's played well in the playoffs. He's a guy that could be a difference maker for the Phillies. The Yankees really need Nick Swisher to perform better. He really hasn't done well this postseason. Both of those guys are toward the bottom of the lineup and I think they could impact this series.
Is Carlos Ruiz the new Orlando Cabrera in that we're going to hear how clutch he is during the postseason? Oh noooo.
I removed some question where Joe just talked about himself, FYI.
A. Lee (New York)
Joe - If Cliff Lee struggles, do you think this has a chance for a yankees sweep.
Yeah, if the Phillies' best pitcher by far doesn't do well, do you think the Yankees have a chance for a sweep? Noooooooooo.
Joe Morgan
(11:20 AM)
I don't think the Yankees will sweep the Phillies, but it becomes a chance for them to sweep the Phillies. The Phillies will win a game because of their bats in one of these first four games.
The Yankees also have pretty impressive bats, you know. (insert dick joke here.)
It won't be a pitchers' duel, it will be a runscoring duel.
Well he was right about that.
Aaron (New Jersey)
Joe: Do you think the phillies would be in this spot if they had halladay instead of lee?
Joe Morgan
(11:23 AM)
That's a tough question to answer. They wouldn't be better. They could have not picked a better guy for their team, personalitywise. They made a perfect trade for them. Halladay could have come in and helped them, but he couldn't have come in and pitched as well as Lee did.
Really? He COULDN'T have? Since the trade deadline:
Lee 79.2 IP, 3.39 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 7.4 K/BB
Halladay 91 IP, 2.97 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, 5.26 K/BB
Both Lee and Halladay were really awesome. But teams that Cliff Lee pitched against over that time frame: Giants, Rockies, Cubs, Diamondbacks, Mets, Braves, Astros, Nationals, Nationals again, Braves again, Brewers, Astros again. Ehhhh. Halladay did it against: Mariners, Yankees, Orioles, Rays, Red Sox, Rays again, Red Sox again, Yankees again, Twins, Yankees again, Rays again, Mariners again, Red Sox again. Other than the Mariners and maybe the Orioles, those are some pretty good offensive teams.
I know everyone's on Lee's jock right now because he won the Cy Young in 2008 then went on an unsustainably awesome run in the 2009 postseason, but Roy Halladay is a better pitcher than Cliff Lee. That's not to say Cliff Lee is bad. He's great. I'd be thrilled if he was on the Yankees for the 2010 season. But Roy Halladay is maybe the best pitcher in baseball and I'm tired of people acting like Cliff Lee is better than he is. Phillies fans in particular are irrational about him, check the sponsorship on his BB-Ref page: "Philly's undisputed leader in sports satire wants to thank Clifton Phifer Lee for what he did for the city and just hope he didn't get traded because Amaro preferred Halladay over a damn fine pitcher." What he did for the city?! It's not like he was CC in Milwaukee, guys, and single-handedly got you into the playoffs or World Series.
And Lee didn't cost them as much as Halladay would have. It was a very good trade for Philadelphia.
Bob (New York)
I am a big Mets fan - what do I do :(
Drink
Joe Morgan
(11:25 AM)
Well, just pull for great baseball games. Pull to see the best players to play at their highest level. Pull for the rain and weather to stay away. You're like me, just pull for great baseball. Pull for individual players and for the games to be good.
But Mets fans pretty much hate every player on each team, from Ryan Howard to Derek Jeter to Shane Victorino to Mariano Rivera, not to mention the ones that seem more easily unlikeable, like Rollins, Hamels, and A-Rod. I can't even tell you some of the "World Series wishlist" things I saw on Mets sites. They were pretty repulsive.
Paul (Harrisburg, Pa)
The Yankees seem to be able to move the runners very well. On the other hand, the Phillies have had almost all homeruns. Is this an advantage to either team?
There was a point in the postseason where the Yankees were like 0-15 with RISP and I'm pretty sure the Phillies didn't score all their runs by home run, or even almost all their runs by home run. Though the last game of the NLCS was less like a playoff game and more like the HR derby.
Joe Morgan
(11:26 AM)
I think both of them rely on the home run. If you look back on the Yankees, most of their runs were scored on home runs.
Somebody please look this up and tell me it's not true so I can laugh at him.
But they're both capable of moving the runners along.
CAPABLE? Well I'm glad you feel that way.
I thikn they're pretty evenly matched.
"thikn" just makes me laugh
I think the Phillies have a little better base stealing.
Do I think Joe is looking at SB%, which is far more important, or just looking at the raw number of stolen bases? Three guesses as to what I think!!!
I think the Phillies have a little more team speed. But other than that, I think they're pretty evenly matched.
Colin (Philadelphia)
If the Phillies beat the Yankees, are you okay with them being called the Little Red Machine?
UH OH!!!!
Joe Morgan
(11:28 AM)
I think if the Phillies win two in a row, it will show that they are an excellent baseball team. It doesn't have any effect on my team or what my team did. I think the Phillies are a fun team to watch, as was my team. They play hard and they're nicknamed the Fightin' Phils and that's meant as a complement because they never quit.
WTF?! This is so not a good answer, Joe.
Dan (CT)
Who do you pick to win the World Series?
Joe Morgan
(11:30 AM)
I think today's matchup will go a long way to determining who will win. If CC is as dominant the was he was his last two starts, I think the Yankees will have an edge.
Did you see Lee in his last start? Guy was ridiculous. Granted, he was probably pitching against a worse offensive team than CC was, but it's not like Lee wasn't dominant in the postseason up to this point.
But can the guy continue to pitch that well for 3 starts? If somehow Lee is able to win the game today, that gives the Phillies a lot more confidence and takes some away from the Yankees. It's too close to call before it starts. We have to see how this game goes and then we can see who has the edge.
Yes, whoever wins the first game will have a 1-0 edge in the series. That is amazing. No one has ever thought of that before.
The Yankees have the homefield edge and they haven't lost a playoff game in the new stadium.
Joe Morgan
(11:31 AM)
Looking forward to a great World Series. I just hope the weather allows the players to play at their highest level.
Sigh.
I'm gonna stop doing these because I feel like I'm not being terribly funny with them any more. Fire Joe Morgan : Justine Credible :: Mariano Rivera : every other relief pitcher ever.
