Chase Utley hit two solo home runs and Cliff Lee pitched a complete game gem as the Phillies beat the Yankees 6-1 in Game One of the World Series.
In what was billed as a pitchers' duel on a cold wet night in the Bronx, it was a lights-out Lee who came out on top over CC Sabathia to dampen the spirits of Murderers' Row.
A dazzling Lee pitched nine innings of six-hit ball, striking out ten and walking none on 122 pitches. Lee pitched with confidence and swagger, seemingly unphased by the magnitude of the occasion.
His fastball was electric, his breaking stuff sharp.
He caught a pop-up on the mound with all the nonchalance of a spring training pitching session, and snared a comebacker with the agility and skill of a veteran.
It wasn't the way the Yankees had imagined the start of their first trip back to the Fall Classic in six years.
Sabathia wasn't awful by any stretch of the imagination, but he picked up his first loss of the postseason after allowing a pair of dingers as part of a four-hit night. In fact, after loading the bases on two walks and a double on 24 first-inning pitches, Sabathia allowed just four more baserunners all night.
The Yankees' bullpen, however surrendered two runs in the eighth inning and two more in the ninth as Lee and the Phillies showed no sign of rust from their NLCS layoff.
The Yankees' prize hurler, who arrived in New York on a $161M deal this summer, walked three and fanned six over 113 pitches—70 for strikes. Unfortunately for CC, he missed his spot twice to the Phillies' third baseman.
Utley launched a third-inning 3-2 fastball into the right field seats to give Philly a 1-0 lead, then sent a similar 0-2 pitch 400 feet into the mist to double Philadelphia's lead to two in the top of the sixth.
The home runs were the first allowed by Yankees' pitching at home in the playoffs this season, snapping Sabathia's perfect 3-0 postseason start in pinstripes.
Raul Ibanez gave the Phillies a cushion with a bases-loaded, two-out single in the eighth inning, and Carlos Ruiz, Jimmy Rollins, and Shane Victorino combined for three consecutive hits in the ninth off Brian Bruney to make it 5-0.
Ryan Howard then drove home Rollins to pad the lead at 6-0, which was more than enough support for Lee.
Such was Lee's dominance, the Yankees—who led the major leagues in 2009 with 244 home runs—could only muster one extra base hit.
The two-three-four hitters in Joe Girardi's lineup went 1-12, and Mark Teixeira and Alex Rodriguez struck out three times each. Only Derek Jeter reached base for the Yankees more than once, and only in the ninth did they have men aboard at the same time.
Jeter was the sole Yankee to make it past second base, and his run in the bottom of the ninth was little more than a footnote on a page documenting Lee's brilliance.
The Phillies looked every part like defending champions.
The Yankees are going to need to draw on every inch of their historic past if they are to regain their crown.
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