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After Game 1 loss, Yanks reach a crisis point

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Jon Paul Morosi

Jon Paul Morosi is a national MLB writer for FOXSports.com. He previously covered baseball for the Detroit Free Press and Seattle Post-Intelligencer. He began his journalism career at the Bay City Times in his native Michigan. Follow him on Twitter.

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Updated Oct 29, 2009 3:11 AM ET
     
 

NEW YORK

After Jorge Posada flailed at one last lethal spinner from Cliff Lee on Wednesday night, we witnessed something never seen before: A team in gray shook hands after the final out of a postseason game at the new Yankee Stadium. The Yankees have a 5-1 postseason record at their new home. Sounds impressive. But the one defeat — a 6-1 loss to the Phillies in Game 1 of the World Series — swung home-field advantage to Philadelphia. In Thursday's Game 2, these confident, charismatic Yankees will face their first true challenge in months. After some early-season turbulence, New York won its division by eight games and didn't trail in either series during the American League playoffs. And after only one loss, the Yankees' championship hopes are in serious peril. Lee, who will pitch again in Game 4 or 5, is only part of the reason why. While the Yankees are justifiably wary of the left-hander — "We're hoping he's not going to be this good the next time, but we know better," Johnny Damon said — the greater concerns revolve around New York's own pitching staff. ... The Yankees wasted a good but not great performance by CC Sabathia, who allowed two Chase Utley solo home runs in seven innings. Now, their ace won't be available to pitch again until Game 4 — on short rest. ... New York's starter in the now-crucial Game 2 is A.J. Burnett, who has allowed a .346 on-base percentage in three postseason starts. When he last pitched, in a game that could have clinched the American League pennant, he allowed four runs in the first inning. ... Manager Joe Girardi publicly expressed confidence in Phil Hughes before the Series began, but the reliever's postseason struggles continued in Game 1. Girardi inserted him with the Yankees behind — a less pressurized situation than when the team is ahead — but Hughes walked the only two batters he faced. Now the history books, a longtime Yankees ally, have turned against them: The Game 1 victor has gone on to triumph in 11 of the past 12 World Series. New York lost Game 1 in 2001. Arizona won in seven. New York lost Game 1 in 2003. Florida won in six. Amazing how one loss changes the feel of a postseason, isn't it? "We definitely don't like this situation," Damon said. Of the six pitchers Girardi used on Wednesday night, only Damaso Marte had appeared in the World Series before. He was the only New York reliever who didn't allow a hit or walk. Coincidence? Perhaps. But this is the least experienced World Series bullpen for a Yankees team during the Mariano Era. And it may become their undoing. "Tonight, I saw a little timidness," pitching coach Dave Eiland said. "First World Series game. Big stage. It's not easy. But we're going to continue to go to them."
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Hughes, often dominant as a setup man during the summer months, has a 9.64 ERA during the postseason. Eiland said Hughes was "trying to be too fine, instead of attacking" in Game 1. "It's just a mental thing," Eiland said. "You have to attack and trust your stuff. ... It's his first World Series game. Hopefully, he got the jitters out tonight." When asked if he expects to continue using him in the same role, Eiland replied, "Sure, why not? He's had a lot more good outings than bad. We're not going to throw in the towel on him yet." In order for the bullpen to have the opportunity to preserve (or blow) a Game 2 lead, Burnett will need to pitch better than when we last saw him. It's not overly dramatic to say that the Yankees' season rests on Burnett's right arm — on a night when Pedro Martinez, a certifiable big-game pitcher, starts for Philadelphia. Even though the Yankees gave Burnett an $82.5 million contract with the idea that he would pitch in games like this, he has been New York's third-best starter in this postseason. Burnett was praised by some after his postseason debut, in Game 2 of the AL Division Series against Minnesota. I assume that was because the Yankees won that game, thanks in large part to Alex Rodriguez's late heroics. But I wasn't particularly impressed by Burnett's performance that night. He walked five batters and hit two others. If the Twins had more horsepower in their lineup, they would have touched him for much more than one run in six innings. And purely based on runs allowed, that was Burnett's best start of the postseason.
Burnett can struggle against patient lineups — like the one Philadelphia has. Nine times on Wednesday night, a Phillies hitter worked into a three-ball count against Sabathia. Nine times. And that didn't happen by accident. Two Phillies officials told me earlier Wednesday that they hoped their team's ability to run up Sabathia's pitch count would become a key to the game. The reasoning was simple: If Sabathia threw a lot of pitches, he might exit the game earlier than usual. Then New York's middle relievers would be relied upon to get more outs. The strategy worked perfectly. When Sabathia left the game after seven innings, the Yankees' deficit was still manageable at 2-0. Four add-on runs later, Philadelphia had a comfortable win. This might be a good time to mention that Burnett walked more batters than any other Yankee during the regular season. So unless he pitches with more precision than usual on Wednesday, the Phillies might have an easier time with him than they did Sabathia. And for now, that's where the focus of any nervous Yankees fan belongs. Yes, Mark Teixeira and Rodriguez went a combined 0-for-8 in Game 1. But even in the midst of his scalding postseason, A-Rod wasn't going to do much on a night when Lee produced one of the finest World Series pitching performances in this decade. Ten strikeouts? No walks? The Yankees were going to lose, even if Hughes had pitched a perfect eighth. "When you're pitching that well," Teixeira said of Lee, "it doesn't matter who you're facing." The Yankees' postgame reaction ranged from Nick Swisher's optimism ("It's only one game") to Damon's realism ("We have to win tomorrow"). I'm inclined to agree with Damon. Remember that the Phillies are 11-1 in postseason home games since last year. If they win at Yankee Stadium again on Wednesday, Jimmy Rollins' prediction of a five-game victory might not look so outrageous after all.

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