It's time

Just before the seventh, and FOX is showing great World Series moments. The ball dribbles through Bill Buckner's legs, and a laugh bursts out of my mouth as I move past the TV.

Problem is, I'm at the Boston Globe. And for those of you short on baseball history, that error was one of the worst moments in Boston Red Sox history, a play where the Sox had it all wrapped up until Buckner prolonged the 86-year curse.

The Sox have been done playing for a while now, of course. Worse yet, their archnemesis, New York, is leading the World Series three games to two.

I am forced to watch at the Boston Globe, where every laugh at Buckner gets a dirty look, and every Hideki Matsui RBI gets a groan.

Ah, yes, Matsui. That's where this story begins, right? The story of Game 6 and Championship #27.

The great storyline going into the game, of course, was that this contest offered a matchup between two players deep within Yankees-Red Sox lore. New York brought Andy Pettitte, who holds the record for most postseason games with 19. He's won four championships and was the pitcher who clinched the American League Division Series and American League Championship for the Yankees this year.

On the mound for the Philadelphia Phillies was Pedro Martinez, the same Pedro who slew the Yankees en route to the 2004 championship by the Sox. Martinez is best known for admitting, before he had learned how to get past New York, that the Yankees were his "daddy."

So they there were, the great Yankees-killer versus the great Yankees playoff pitcher, ready for a duel that made even New York fans who were sick over the series stretching to six games pleased as the great matchup.

Martinez buzzed through the first inning, as did Pettitte, then Martinez opened up the second frame with a leadoff walk. (You have to wonder who Pedro's Little League coach was, and if he spoke enough Spanish to teach little Pedro to never walk the leadoff man.)

Alex Rodriguez trotted to first, and the Matsui show began. Matsui battled Pedro in an eight-pitch battle that saw Godzilla (Matsui's nickname in his native Japan) hit a few Japanese home runs, towering blasts landing in the right-field seats that would once have been counted as homers in Japanese baseball.

Finally, Matsui straightened one out and went just as deep, and five batters into the game, the Yankees were ahead 2-1.

It was a lead New York would never relinquish.

Pettitte, although pitching on merelythree days of rest, looked decent early, humming through the Phillies lineup. He allowed a triple (that could have been a double if not for a strange bounce), then the runner scored on a sacrifice fly.

Pedro, on the other hand, hit some more trouble in the very next inning. Derek Jeter hit a one-out single, then Martinez walked Johnny Damon after a seven-pitch at-bat. Next up was Mark Teixeira, who has had a measley two hits this World Series and would probably be more comfortable hiding in a locker. But Pedro bailed him out, plunking him to load the bases.

Rodriguez stepped to the plate with another chance to continue writing his magical playoff story, but Pedro struck him out.

Next up: Matsui. The Yankees already led 2-1, with the designated hitter having done his job. Matsui seemed eager, though, to make up for time lost in Philadelphia, where he rode the pine for three games (with no DH).

Matsui ripped a beautiful RBI single up the middle with two outs and the bases loaded, boosting New York's margin to 4-1.

By the time the fifth came around, Pedro was gone, chased after just four innings. The vaunted pitching matchup had fallen to Japanese pressure, and the bats would now decide the game.

Jeter came out with no care for who was on the mound, lacing a leadoff double to keep the Phillies on their heels. After Jeter was sacrificed over to third, Teixeira finally came through, singling Jeter home to put the Yankees up 5-1. It was the only RBI the Yankees would get that wasn't by Matsui.

Yes, Matsui again. After A-Rod got plunked one more time (the fourth time this series), Matsui the Phillies-killer did as he knew best, doubling the runners home for a 7-1 New York lead.

Apparently, after being rested for three games, Matsui thought he'd compensate with three games' worth of stats in one amazing evening.

Matsui's 6 RBI tied a record for the most RBI in a World Series game.

In the top half of the innings, by the way, Pettitte was still mowing them down, pitching a nearly flawless game. He allowed just two hits through five innings, which is just what the Yankees needed after their poor pitching destroyed their six-run effort the night before.

As Pettitte moved into the sixth, the camera cut to the bullpen, capturing a shot of someone tossing a ball at Joba Chamberlain, who totally missed it and saw it fly by his head.

Stomach ulcers, commence. Yankees fans are already nervous enough about ever having to use the bullpen (especially Chamberlain), so that's the last thing we want to see.

Pettitte gave up a walk, a two-run homer, and a double, and it was time to summon Chamberlain. The real test began. But surprisingly, Chamberlain got his outs.

In the top of the seventh, Chase Utley came to the plate with two guys on, with the chance to pull the Phils within one with one swing. But the man who has foiled the Yankees so far this Series, who even dared to tie Mr. October Reggie Jackson's home record, was struck out by Damaso Marte.

It was then that you realized that it was time. This could be it. It could really be happening.

Rodriguez came to the plate, and the Phillies threw at his head again. But what were they doing? Getting A-Rod uncomfortable seemed to be Philadelphia's last, desperate ploy to keep some kind of hold on the Series.

But the Yankees have been winning with just moderate production from A-Rod. And the pitching showed up tonight. And they were holding fast; no meltdowns, no worries, nothing.

Phillies MVP Ryan Howard came to the plate and struck out again, the 13th time this series (that's a record). People say that if you're a power hitter, you're going to strike out a lot as well as hit home runs. Well, Howard has hit one home run and struck out 13 times. Yeah, I think New York has this one.

Enter Sandman. Five outs, game over. Did this just happen?

The New York Yankees are world champions. !!!!!

The New York Yankees are world champions!
The New York Yankees are world champions!
The New York Yankees are world champions!

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Game Recap

Everything I feared, and more

Game 1 of the World Series was everything I feared, and more. The bats didn't show up (4 total hits; 2 by Derek Jeter). The bullpen blew it (Phil Hughes got another 2 earned runs, and Damaso Marte and David Robertson were the guys who let them score; then Brian Bruney and Phil Coke couldn't put a cap on it). And worst of all, CC Sabathia was Chased -- not chased from the game (that didn't happen until the eighth inning), but slammed twice by Chase Utley, whose two solo home runs were the difference for most of the game.

Argh.

It was a wet, chilly night in the Bronx, a night that had most thinking the game shouldn't be played. The poor Yankees probably wish it hadn't been played, because the non-pretty loss was an almost must-win for them. Oh, and they didn't win it, by the way.

The game was at home, and Sabathia was on the mound -- two factors that the Bombers have hung on throughout the postseason while their bats haven't exactly been bombing.

But without even half an inning in the books, it already looked bad.

After Jimmy Rollins gave the Phils a whimpering start to the series by bunting (bunting?!?!) the first pitch of the game, Sabathia allowed Philadelphia to load the bases and went through six batters on 24 pitches.

He escaped that jam, but in the top of the ninth, Utley worked him for a nine-pitch at-bat then sent one out of the park.

Cliff Lee was unhittable in the bottom half of hte frames, seeming to get stronger as the game went on. He tossed a complete game, in fact, which was the only sensible thing for an unstoppable pitcher to do with these made-of-china bullpens.

Lee struck out the side in the bottom of the fourth and had seven strikeouts through the first four innings. He ended the night with 10.

Sabathia retired eight straight, but in the top of the sixth, Utley got him again to put the Phillies up 2-0. Sabathia got a big, three-pitch strikeout on Raul Ibanez to end the inning, but the damage was done.

And then the bullpen made it worse. Hughes has been the loose linchpin since October began, but manager Joe Girardi called on him again. Sure enough, he walked leadoff batter Jimmy Rollins (of all people) then let him steal before walking Shane Victorino. That brought in Marte, who surprisingly, didn't blow the game, but Robertson couldn't hold the men on. In the next inning, Bruney encouraged more carnage and saw the Phillies' margin move to 5-0.

Coke let another in on a Ryan Howard double.

6-0? Pitcher's duel? Well, it was, until the Yankees tapped that cesspool they've been calling their bullpen.

Ugh. Ugh. Ugly.

The Yankees' vaunted bats went out with little more than an error-aided whimper in the bottom of the ninth, and that was it.

There's always tomorrow, but I think we know what needs the tweaking before 7:57 Thursday evening.

Game recap

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