YANKEES V. PHILLIES

The battles have been fought, and now the WAR begins. The New York Yankees and the Philadelphia Phillies have made it to the World Series. With the Fall Classic beginning tonight, lets break it down, position by position:

CATCHER:

Jorge Posada vs. Carlos Ruiz
While the Phillies' backstop is a clutch performer and was fantastic in the NLCS, Posada is one of the best offensive catchers in the game. Their defense is about even, so it's Jorge's experience that puts him ahead.

Advantage: Yankees

FIRST BASE:

Mark Teixeira vs. Ryan Howard
I'm going to go about this the same way most pundits have already. Offensively during the season both of these guys were monsters that can be considered MVP candidates. In the post-season, however, it's been Howard who has continued his mashing, while Teixeira has mostly struggled. That said, Teix has contributed mightily with his glove, which has been one of the top factors of the Yanks' October success thus far. He is far and away the better defender, and that, to me, makes this category a wash.

Advantage: Even

SECOND BASE:

Robinson Cano vs. Chase Utley
This is a tough one. Both had great offensive seasons, but both have underperformed in the post. Utley is rumored to be dealing with multiple injuries, but he is more clutch than Cano, and has World Series experience.

Advantage: Phillies

SHORT STOP:

Derek Jeter vs. Jimmy Rollins
Rollins talks a lot, the Captain does not. Both have been offensive spark plugs at the top of their line-ups, but Jeter has had one of his best seasons ever, and it's continued here in October. Rollins may have gotten a ring last year, but Jeter turns it up like no other on both sides of the diamond in October.

Advantage: Yankees

THIRD BASE:

ARod vs. Pedro Feliz
Defensively, these guys are both pretty good, but that is where it ends. ARod is on another planet right now.

Advantage: Yankees

RIGHT FIELD:

Nick Swisher vs. Jayson Werth
In just about every category, the Phils Right Fielder has performed at a MVP-type level this post-season, while Swisher has struggled more than any other Yankee starter. Easy one.

Advantage: Phillies

CENTER FIELD:

Melky Cabrera vs. Shane Victorino
Melky turned it back on in the ALCS, but Victorino is still a small package of baseball goodness, and another spark plug for the Phillies. Still, though, Melky can be counted on late in games to come through in the clutch. Counting various factors together, I'm actually going to call it even.

Advantage: Even

LEFT FIELD:

Johnny Damon vs. Raul Ibanez
Both had good seasons, but Ibanez's post-season hasn't been great. Damon wasn't great in the ALDS, but great in the ALCS. Ibanez is a much better defender. MUCH BETTER.

Advantage: Phillies

DH:

Hideki Matsui vs. Ben Francisco
The Phillies can also swap Ibanez and Francisco here, if so, then the last category can be interchanged as well. In Yankee Stadium, Matsui is the man.

Advantage: Yankees

ACE PITCHER:

CC Sabathia vs. Cliff Lee
The two Indians will face off in three possible match-ups. Both of them have been fantastic so far, winning CC an ALCS MVP award, but the key will be who can survive going on three days rest. Sabathia is the proven horse here.

Advantage: Yankees

THE REST OF THE ROTATION:

The Yanks have reliable veteran Andy Pettitte and A.J. Burnett is still a wild card, and have almost no depth past that. Meanwhile, the Phillies have so many pitchers, Charlie Manuel has got them coming out of the bullpen regularly. That said, the Yanks 3 starters are all better than the Phillies past Lee, but is there an advantage to the Phils numbers?

Advantage: Even

MIDDLE RELIEF:

With all those starters plus their regular crew they have the advantage here, especially since most of the Yankee relievers haven't been that trustworthy. If they can turn that around, then they do have the better bullpen. For now, though, it's the Phils.

Advantage: Phillies

CLOSER:

Mariano Rivera vs. Brad Lidge
While Lidge has bounced back from a miserable season, he's no Mo. Nothing more to say.

Advantage: Yankees

BENCH:

Both the Yankees and Phils have a bopper in Matt Stairs and Eric Hinske sitting there, and both guys have been big in these scenarios. There are also other interesting weapons, but the biggest one can be for the Yankees when they hit Citizen's Bank Park, and that is Matsui off the bench. Now that's a weapon!

Advantage: Yankees

MANAGER:

Joe Giradi vs. Charlie Manuel
I've said a lot about Giradi's managing already, but you have to give it to him for getting his team here. Charlie, though, has gotten them here two years in a row.

Advantage: Phillies

Based on the match-ups above it reads 7-5-3 for the Yankees, but a few of these can sway a bit. Are there intangibles? Of course. The Yanks haven't lost a game yet this October in the new Yankee Stadium, and they have home field advantage. They've also been comeback kids all year, and they never quit. The same can be said about the Phillies, though, so it's going be a fight for sure. The Phillies have also not gone further than 5 games in any series in the last two years.

Either way, the story is going down like this: the world champions defend their title against the return of the retired former champs. Fittingly, it sounds like a Rocky movie, and I do believe the retired former champs will come out on top, but that team will be from NY. My predication? Yankees beat the Phillies in a hard fought 7 games.