Yankees Won 2009 World Series

Pedro Martinez was defeated by his arch-enemy, the New York Yankees. Yankees fans knew Martinez a lot—from his strikeout feat in 1999 against the Yankees, striking out 17 out of 28 batters without a single walk, his 2003 ALCS silly game antics against Jorge Posada and a sending Don Zimmer to the ground, and his tragic loss in the seventh game of the 2003 ALCS.

Yankees, who bagged their 27th World Series title against the Philadelphia Phillies, gave their newly-built stadium a precious gift. Japanese Hideki Matsui, the left-handed batter who bats the same way as the legendary Babe Ruth, finished the game with a .615 average with a homerun in the 2nd inning. Matsui also hit a double to the deep center allowing Mark Teixeira and Alex Rodriguez to score in the fifth inning—Matsui finished the game with 6 RBIs. First baseman Mark Teixiera contributed with a single to the right center allowing Derek Jeter to score. Derek Jeter hit with .407 average and scored two runs. Alex Rodriguez also earned two runs.

Starting pitcher Andy Pettitte pitched for only 5.2 innings with 5.40 ERA. Superstar closer Mariano Rivera relieved Damaso Marte after striking out Ryan Howard in the 8th inning. Pettitte, who won the so-called “Duel of the Old Goats” against Pedro Martinez, gave out a homerun to Ryan Howard in the sixth inning. Pettitte became the pitcher with the most number of wins in postseason (18 wins) and the most number of game-clinching wins.

Catcher Jorge Posada, Derek Jeter and Andy Pettitte are the only Yankees remaining in the roster who won the title in 2000. Yankees Manager was with the team as a reserve catcher when they won the 1996, 1998 and 1999 World Series. Also, this could be the last game of the Godzilla from Japan, Hideki Matsui, in a Yankee uniform. Matsui is the first Japanese who won the World Series MVP and the first Designated Hitter (DH) who received the award.

photo courtesy of Yahoo! Sports