Well, hope lives another day. I think the Yankees' chances to win is better with Pettitte in 6 than CC in 7. Andy is a big game pitcher, but it will be interesting to see if he can bring the same stuff deep into the game that he used to. He hasn't gone on three days' rest for a few years, and at 37 there is a possibility that the tank will run out sooner. Burnett had very poor command, and the short rest was certainly a factor.

Some thoughts so far:

Johnny Damon is the toughest out in the Yankee lineup. He is as much reactive as he is proactive. He works the count and is as good with 2 strikes as he is with none.

There's no secret about how to beat the Yanks. It's preventing situations that allow Rivera to enter the game. The turning point of the series is the 9th inning of Game 4 when Damon started the rally. Had he gotten out, the Phillies would have faced someone other than Rivera with a tie score in the bottom of the ninth.

Chase Utley is the best player on the field...for either team. He has a realistic possibility of retiring from the game some day as the greatest secondbaseman ever.

The series always invites overanalysis by the media. If you don't get a hit in a couple of games, it's a slump and there's a major problem. I have the same faith in Howard and Teixeira (who was unfairly maligned by the Daily News cover today) as I did before the series started.

Eric Hinske has now played in his third consecutive world series for three different teams (Red Sox '07, Rays '08, and Yankees '09). The onl other player to do this was Don Baylor (Red Sox '86, Twins '87 and A's '88).

Something to keep in mind when they talk about recent postseason records is that new records only bear relevance to baseball history from 1995-present since that is the period where two rounds of playoffs began. Also, keep in mind that there were never any playoffs for players until 1969, and if you want to get technical, league championship series were best of 5 until 1985 when Kansas City inmmediately benefited by falling down 3-2 in the LCS before winning the last two games.

If Victorino can't go because of the injured finger, it would have multiple consequences. The Phillies, who do not have a DH, can make do by inserting Francisco in left and DHing Ibanez. Without Victorino Francisco has to play center, Ibanez plays in left and they'd have to use either a lefty or insert a weak hitting righthanded batter.

With Cabrera's injured hamstring keeping him out of the rest of the series, it probably wasn't advisable to be jumping around all over the dugout with a few teammates before the game.