Philadelphia Phillies at New York Yankees (-191, 9)
Pitching matchup
Pedro Martinez (Philadelphia Phillies) vs. A.J. Burnett (New York Yankees)
Pedro Martinez (5-1, 3.63 ERA)
Martinez was part of the 2004 Boston Red Sox rotation that completed the historic comeback against the Yankees in the ALCS then went on to sweep the St. Louis Cardinals, with Martinez picking up a win in Game 3. He pitched seven shutout innings, allowing just three hits while striking out six batters.
This season, the Phillies blew the dust of the veteran righty for the final chunk of the regular season and playoffs. Martinez surprised even his team by returning to his Cy Young winning form. In the postseason, he again put up a seven inning shutout gem, but was let down by the Phillies bullpen in a 2-1 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 2 of the NLCS.
Against the Yankees, Pedro is 1-2 with a 4.71 ERA in six career playoff starts. For his career, he’s 11-11 with a 3.20 ERA in 32 total starts versus New York and should be the target of plenty a Bronx Cheer Thursday night.
A.J. Burnett (13-9, 4.04 ERA)
Burnett was a member of the Florida Marlins World Series team in 2003, however, he pitched only four games all season before undergoing surgery. He finally got a taste of the postseason this year and is 0-0 with a 4.42 ERA in three trips to the mound. His most recent start lasted just over six innings in which the right-hander allowed four runs in the opening frame, then was untouchable through five innings until surrendering two runs in the seventh.
Burnett has struggled with his stuff this postseason. He’s walked a total of eight batters over those three starts and has watched his pitch counts climb to an average of just under 100 pitches per game despite lasting a little over six innings per start.
In his last appearance against the Phillies, Burnett was hit hard for three home runs and five runs over six innings in a 7-3 loss in May. For his career, he is 5-8 with a 4.85 ERA in 16 starts against Philadelphia. Burnett was 5-3 with a 3.38 ERA at new Yankee Stadium this season.
Hitting
In Game 1, Phillies second baseman Chase Utley showed bettors who the real power team was with two home runs in his team’s 6-1 victory. Utley is hitting .324 with three home runs and four RBIs. Also getting to the Yankees staff in the World Series opener was Ryan Howard (two hits) and Raul Ibanez, who had two RBIs off one hit.
New York was stymied by Philadelphia starter Cliff Lee, who limited the Bronx Bombers to just six hits and an unearned run in nine innings while striking out 10 batters. Getting knocks for the Yankees was Derek Jeter, who had three hits and scored the team’s lone run. October hero Alex Rodriguez was 0-for-4 with three strikeouts, giving the New York media some front-page fodder. Rodriguez seemed to have snapped out of his postseason funk before Game 1 and is still hitting .389 in the playoffs. Another bad performance would have the wolves at A-Rod’s door – again.
Weather
The Game 2 forecast is calling for partially cloudy skies over the Big Apple with a 20 percent chance of rain and temperatures dipping into the mid-50s. There is a light breeze blowing in from left field at 5 mph.
Pick: Over 9
