MLB Playoff Predictions: Possible WS Rematch NY Yankees vs. Phillies

It’s been nearly two years since the New York Yankees ended the Phillies’ hopes of repeating as World Series champions.

Since that time, both teams have won more than 190 games, and both advanced to their respective leagues’ Championship Series last season.

But now, after playing to nearly identical records this season, might the two teams be headed toward a rematch of the 2009 World Series?

While the Yankees rank at or near the top of the league in runs scored and home runs this season, the Phillies have seen their name at the front of the pack in team-ERA and strikeouts.

While the Phillies have had three starting pitchers mentioned in the Cy Young race, the Yankees have had three players—at one time or another—in the running for the MVP award.

And while the Yankees have seen two of their greatest players reach historic milestones this season, the Phillies have, as a team, enjoyed one of their best seasons in franchise history.

So, after two years, will the Phillies and Yankees meet in another World Series?

One thing is for sure—Cliff Lee will be back for a possible late-October rematch.

This Time Around, the Phillies Have the Better Starting Pitching

In the 2009 World Series, the Yankees were able to send both CC Sabathia and Andy Pettitte to the mound twice in the six-game series.

The Phillies were left to counter with arguably one of their greatest mid-season acquisitions of all time in Cliff Lee and 38-year-old Pedro Martinez.

Not exactly the ideal complement for a World Series 1-2 punch, especially considering Martinez had only pitched during the second-half of the regular season, his 18th year in the league.

The Phils’ bullpen also gave up 10 earned runs in the final four games of the series.

Fast-forward two years, and the Phillies now have the upper-hand when it comes to starting pitching.

While the Yankees do not have a single member of their rotation with an ERA under 3.00, the Phillies have three.

After starting Sabathia in a potential Game 1, the Yankees would be left with A.J. Burnett, Ivan Nova, Bartolo Colon, Freddy Garcia and, if they decide to take him out of the bullpen following the ALDS, Phil Hughes.

After Roy Halladay, the Phillies could send out Cliff Lee (17-8, 2.40 ERA), Cole Hamels (14-9, 2.75 ERA), and Roy Oswalt, while using Vance Worley (11-3, 3.03 ERA) out of the pen.

Halladay and Oswalt just might be better options than the ones Martinez and Joe Blanton gave the Phils in ’09—the duo combined to go 0-2 while giving up 11 earned runs in three games.

The Yankees were able to rearrange pitching matchups midway through the 2009 series by starting Sabathia in Game 4 against Blanton, which left Pettitte to face Martinez in the decisive Game 6.

The Phillies also started Hamels only once in the six games.  Hamels pitched game-three and gave up five earned runs in 4.1 innings.

In a possible rematch this season, neither of these is likely to reoccur against the Phils.

The Yankees' Lineup Will Be Full of Power

In a possible rematch, the Yankees will replace a former World Series MVP with a candidate for this season’s MVP award.

The Yankees no longer have Hideki Matsui, who drove in six runs in the series-clinching game of the 2009 World Series.

Instead, they have Curtis Granderson—the player with 41 home runs and 119 RBI this season.

He might just fit nicely in a World Series lineup.

Granderson isn’t the sole power source for the Yankees, either.

The team has seen six players combine for 162 home runs.

Granderson, Mark Teixeira, Robinson Cano, Nick Swisher, Russell Martin and Alex Rodriguez have each smacked more than 15 homers this season.

Granderson, Cano and Teixeira have each driven in more than 100 runs, as well.

While the Phillies have enjoyed another season in which Ryan Howard (33 HR, 115 RBI) has ranked at or near the top of the league in power-numbers, the team does not boast three players with more than 100 RBI each.

And while the Phillies have a team average of .253 with 150 home runs, the Yankees are set to finish with a .264 average and 218 home runs.

If the Phillies’ pitching were to meet the Yankees' batters in a World Series rematch, both sides would have to witness their strongest area of play during the regular season turn in even more dominating performances in order to win a championship.

The Phillies' Core Will Look to Match the Success of the Yankees' Core Four

Few could have expected what would occur over the next 16 years when Derek Jeter, Jorge Posada, Mariano Rivera and Andy Pettitte debuted with the Yankees during the 1995 and 1996 seasons.

Fifteen postseason appearances, 12 American League East titles, seven World Series appearances and five World Series championships later, the Yankees’ “Core Four” has more than left its mark in baseball history.

However, the Core was shortened to three members this season, following Pettitte’s retirement.

And although the other three players, with the exception of Posada (who has witnessed one of the worst seasons of his career), have had solid seasons, they are also much closer to retirement than they are to their prime.

But the Phillies have a core group of their own that has been a part of five consecutive seasons of playoff baseball.

Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, Cole Hamels and Ryan Madson have only played for the Phils during their careers and were around before the playoffs and World Series appearances became obtainable goals.

Rollins has been with the Phillies since the 2000 season, while the remaining four have careers with the team that date back from 2003-2006.

Although they have not played together for 17 consecutive seasons like Jeter, Posada and Rivera, the Phillies’ core has been around for five straight National League East titles, four straight NLCS appearances, two World Series trips and one World Series title.

Not quite the same amount of titles as the Yankees’ core, but impressive nonetheless.

But this is also the first postseason trip that the Phillies will take after winning more than 100 games in the regular season with their core group.

And it’s also their first trip with both Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee joining them.

The Phillies’ core has their work cut out for them if they want to match the number of championships won by the Yankee’s Core Four.

But after playing in more than 40 postseason games together over the past five seasons, it would only be fitting for the Phillies’ core to face the Yankees in a World Series rematch with the opportunity to win a championship—as well as the chance to continue a legacy—on the line.