2009 World Series

The 2009 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's 2009 season. It was the 105th edition of the World Series and featured a best-of-seven playoff between the Philadelphia Phillies, champions of the National League, and the New York Yankees, champions of the American League. The Yankees won the series 4 games to 2, earning their 27th World Series championship.

The games were played between October 28 and November 4 and watched by about 19 million viewers on Fox. The Yankees had the best record in Major League Baseball during the regular season, while the Phillies had won the National League East. Both teams had to win several rounds of playoff games to reach the World Series. The Yankees' victory made them the first team to win the World Series after losing it the year before.

Many exciting moments happened during the series. Cliff Lee of the Phillies pitched very well in the first game, and Chase Utley hit several home runs. The Yankees came back in several games, with key hits from players like Mark Teixeira and Hideki Matsui. Matsui was named the Most Valuable Player of the series after hitting important home runs, becoming the first player from Japan to receive this honor. The series also saw several records being broken or tied in areas like home runs, strikeouts, and championship wins.

Teams

See also: 2009 Major League Baseball postseason

This was the seventh time the New York and Pennsylvania teams met in the World Series. It was also the fifth time teams from Philadelphia and New York City met for a big sports championship.

Philadelphia Phillies

Main article: 2009 Philadelphia Phillies season

Before the season started, the Phillies made some changes. They got new players like Raúl Ibañez to help the team. During the season, they played well and finished first in their group. They won many games and got to the World Series again.

New York Yankees

Main article: 2009 New York Yankees season

The Yankees also made changes before the season, getting new players like CC Sabathia. They played in a new stadium and had a great season, finishing first in their group. They won their games and got to the World Series.

Series preview

The two teams had played each other earlier in the year. Both teams had strong players and many home runs. The pitchers were also very good, and everyone was excited to see how the series would go.

Background

The 2009 World Series started on October 28, 2009, which was the latest start ever for a World Series. Game 4 was played on November 1, and the final game was on November 4. This was only the third World Series to end in a month other than October.

The Philadelphia Phillies were defending their title from the previous year, while the New York Yankees were aiming for their next championship. This was the fifth time teams from New York and Philadelphia met in the World Series, and it had two fun nicknames: the "Turnpike Series" after the road connecting the two cities, and the "Liberty Series" after important landmarks in each city.

Summary

The 2009 World Series was the big championship game for Major League Baseball that year. It was between the Philadelphia Phillies and the New York Yankees. The Yankees won the series 4 games to 2, claiming their 27th championship title.

Matchups

Game 1

The Phillies scored first with a home run by Chase Utley. The Yankees tied the game, but the Phillies added more runs, winning 6–1.

Game 2

The Phillies scored first, but the Yankees came back to win 3–1.

Game 3

The game started late due to rain. The Yankees won 8–3.

Game 4

This was the first World Series game in November. The Yankees won 7–4.

Game 5

The Yankees scored first, but the Phillies came back to win 8–2.

Game 6

The Yankees won 7–3 to clinch the World Series.

Composite line score

The 2009 World Series was the big championship game for baseball that year. The New York Yankees beat the Philadelphia Phillies by winning 4 out of 6 games. This was the Yankees' 27th big championship win!

Broadcasting

Fox Sports televised the 2009 World Series for the tenth year in a row in the United States. Joe Buck provided the main commentary, with Tim McCarver giving analysis. The games were also broadcast on ESPN Radio, with Jon Miller and Joe Morgan describing the action.

Fox Sports en Español showed the games for Spanish-speaking viewers in the U.S. Each team's main radio station also broadcast all the games with their own announcers. In Philadelphia, WPHT handled the English broadcasts, and WUBA handled the Spanish ones. In New York, WCBS-AM covered the games in English. This broadcast featured Suzyn Waldman, the first woman to announce a World Series game on radio. XM Satellite Radio provided multiple ways for subscribers to listen to each game.

Ratings

The 2009 World Series was very popular on TV. Game 1 had 19.5 million viewers, which was the second-highest opening game since 2000. Game 4 had even more viewers, with 22.8 million people watching, the highest for any World Series game since 2004. Overall, the 2009 World Series was one of the highest-rated since 2004, with an average of 11.7 viewers per game.

Series overview and aftermath

Many players from both teams won awards for their great play during the 2009 season. Teixeira and Jeter each won a Gold Glove and a Silver Slugger Award. Jimmy Rollins and Shane Victorino also won Gold Gloves, and Chase Utley won a Silver Slugger Award. Rivera was named the 2009 DHL Delivery Man of the Year and was chosen as Sporting News’s Pro Athlete of the Year. Jeter won the Hank Aaron Award, the Roberto Clemente Award, and was named Sports Illustrated’s Sportsman of the Year for 2009. Matsui won the World Series MVP for his excellent play, becoming the first Japanese player and the first full-time designated hitter to win the award.

This was the last World Series between two teams from the Eastern Time Zone.

Yankees

The Yankees' win brought their total championships to 27, more than any other team in North American sports. This was their first year in a brand-new stadium. The victory was special for Alex Rodriguez, as it was his first and only world championship win. Before this, Rodriguez had played in many games but had never been in a World Series.

The Yankees' success was thanks to many players, including Series MVP Hideki Matsui, new players like Mark Teixeira and CC Sabathia, and key team members Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, Andy Pettitte, and Jorge Posada. Manager Joe Girardi also helped by using only three starting pitchers during the playoffs. The Yankees dedicated their win to their team owner George Steinbrenner, who had recently stepped back from his role with the team. After the win, the Yankees had a celebration parade in Manhattan, New York City. They also visited the Dominican Republic and the White House with a special trophy.

Phillies

After Game 4, a newspaper in Philadelphia accidentally printed an ad congratulating the Phillies for winning the World Series. The Phillies lost because they didn’t have enough strong pitchers, and their batters didn’t hit well. Only Chase Utley played very well, while other players struggled. The Phillies made changes to their team afterward but faced challenges in the following years.

David Paterson ticket scandal

New York Governor David Paterson attended Game 1 with tickets given to him by the Yankees. Later, it was found that he did not properly pay for these tickets and had to pay a fine for his actions.