ALCS Game 6: Yanks v.s Angels

Chone Figgins 3B
Bobby Abreu RF
Torii Hunter CF
Vladimir Guerrero DH
Kendry Morales 1B
Howie Kendrick 2B
Juan Rivera LF
Jeff Mathis C
Erick Aybar SS

NEWS AND NOTES

From TheLohudYankees:

WEATHER: Clear and cool with a dry outlook for the rest of the night. Let’s play some baseball. The full forecast is here.

STATE OF THE STRIPES: The Yankees remain one win from a 40th pennant and first World Series trip since 2003. They were nine outs away from it on Thursday in Anaheim after a thrilling six-run rally, but could not hold a two-run lead and now have to win one of the next two games at Yankee Stadium to advance. The odds are certainly in their favor; 19 of the 28 teams to hold a 3-2 lead since 1985 have gone on to win the series.

BATTER VS. PITCHER: Here’s the Angels vs. Pettitte. And here’s the Yankees vs. Saunders.

HOME SWEET HOME: The Yankees were a major-league best 57-24 record at home this season, including a 36-10 mark since June 30. They lost consecutive home games only once in that stretch and have won all four postseason games there so far this year.

LEAKY PEN: The Yankees bullpen was supposed to be a strength in the postseason but it hasn’t felt that way lately. Phil Hughes has allowed three earned runs, nine hits and has a WHIP of 2.36 in 4 2/3 innings during the playoffs while Joba Chamberlain has a 3.38 ERA and has seen opponents hit. 500 off him over 2 2/3 innings. Should Joe Girardi use Dave Robertson more often? He’s thrown three scoreless innings during the postseason.

BOTTOM TO THE TOP: Melky Cabrera has five hits in the past two games and has upped his ALCS average to .381 (8-for-21). Cabrera also has three walks and four RBI.

STRUGGLING SWISH: Nick Swisher continues to be a black hole in the lineup during the postseason. Swisher is 2-for-17 with 16 LOB in the ALCS and 3-for-29 in the playoffs with only one RBI.

SLOW STARTERS: The Angels four first-inning runs in Game 5 marked the first time they’d scored in any of the opening three innings of any postseason game this year. The four runs also equaled the total runs they scored in all of Games 1 and 2 combined.

CAPTAIN JUSTICE: Derek Jeter will play in his 47th LCS game tonight, moving him past David Justice and into second place on the all-time list (Manny Ramirez has 49). Jeter isn’t just showing up either; he’s on a nine-game postseason hitting streak that dates back to 2007.

LIGHTNING ROD: Alex Rodriguez had a down night, relatively, in Game 5, since he didn’t drive in a run for the first time in eight postseason games this year. He did go 1-for-3, though, with a double and run scored as well as two walks (one intentional). A-Rod has a hit in 10 straight playoff games.