By Ron Espinola Posted October 14, 2009
We may have to wait a little longer for the NLSC match-up, but the Angels, and Yankees couldn’t wait. Each team swept its divisional series.
The Angels are riding high after sweeping the hapless Red Sox.
They did this in typical Angels fashion, with speed on the bases and solid pitching.
In the other ALDS, the Yankees made short work of the Twins who seemed to have spent all of their emotion beating the Tigers.
A renewed Alex Rodriguez and millions of dollars in salaries seem to have rejuvenated the Bronx Bombers.
Although the Yankees appear to be on a roll and finished the regular season with 103 wins, the ALCS should be exciting and is anything but a forgone conclusion.
The Yankees simply have a hard time beating the Angels although they did win the last regular-season series.
The Angels have the Yankees number. They are the only team that has a winning record against the Yankees since 2002 (espn.com). They have also knocked the Bombers out of the playoffs in their two previous meetings.
Expect the Angels to continue to run the bases well and constantly apply pressure to the Yankees’ defense. In addition, their starting pitching is definitely improved with the mid-season acquisition of Scott Kazmir.
The Yankees will rely on their new free agents CC Sabathia, AJ Burnett, and Mark Teixeira. They have stabilized the Yankees defense while the long-time contributors Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, Jorge Posada, and Andy Pettitte have had solid seasons.
According to Pettitte, “It’s going to be a war with us and the Angels.”
