The champagne is barely dry in the Yankees clubhouse, but the business of 2010 is already well under way. Three trades are in the books, a number of players have already filed for free agency and Bobby Abreu has a new deal with the Angels.
In that vein, three clubs made decisions on contract options Friday as they held on to star players for next year. The Phillies and Diamondbacks both picked up the options they held on ace pitchers Cliff Lee and Brandon Webb, respectively, while the White Soxbought out right fielder Jermaine Dye.
Chicago's World Series MVP in 2005, Dye, who will turn 36 in January, was due to make $12 million in 2010. He'll instead receive $950,000 from the White Sox and hit the open market.
Hideki Matsui was named the Most Valuable Player in the 2009 World Series after a record-setting performance in the decisive Game 6.
Matsui drove in six of the Yankees' seven runs in their World Series-clinching victory, staking New York to an early lead with a two-run homer off of Pedro Martinez in the second inning and falling a triple short of the cycle. His six RBI were the most by any player in a World Series clincher. Five others -- including Reggie Jackson -- held the record of five RBI previously.
"It's awesome," Matsui said through a translator of his achievement. "Unbelievable. I'm surprised myself.
As if the first Game 6 in the World Series in six years wasn't enough to whet your appetite, it's Pedro Martinez in the Bronx, Round 2, on Thursday night. Oh, there's a championship on the line as well as the Yankees try for the second time to win their 27th championship.
Yes, there will be no shortage of drama as the Fall Classic returns to Yankee Stadium, and the MLB FanHouse crew will be here to take you from the first pitch to the final out and beyond.
Will the Yankees celebrate or will the Phillies deliver the best thing all of sports -- a Game 7? Join us after the jump, starting at 7:45 PM ET for a LIVE chat as we find out.
Playoff Pulse is our morning rundown of the night that was and the night that will be during the MLB postseason.
Looking Forward ...
Much will be made in the lead-up to Game 6 of another Yankees starter -- Andy Pettitte -- going on three days' rest, assuming of course that that is officially announced Tuesday. Of course, there wasn't much of a choice for Joe Girardi.
The Phillies do have some interesting options as they head back to New York. Game 6 starter Pedro Martinez was the easy part, but you can't expect him to go all nine innings, so, especially if the Phillies have a lead, what happens then?
It's now or never for the Philadelphia Phillies, who, for the first time in the last two postseasons, face elimination in Game 5 of the World Series Monday night at Citizens Bank Ballpark.
The defending champs will have the raucous Philadelphia crowd on their side as well as ace Cliff Lee, who has been virtually unhittable so far in the playoffs, but they'll have to tangle with A.J. Burnett, who shut them down in Game 2, and the rest of a Yankees team that can smell its first title since 2000.
Join the MLB FanHouse crew after the jump for a LIVE chat throughout Game 5. The festivities start at 7:45 PM ET.
Playoff Pulse is our morning rundown of the night that was and the night that will be during the MLB postseason.
Looking Forward ...
Not this again. The World Series hasn't gone past five games since 2003, and that streak could be extended for a sixth straight year if the Yankees take care of business Monday night in Philadelphia.
There's a good chance that it won't and the Yankees will return to New York for Game 6 instead of a parade. The reason for that, of course, is Cliff Lee. But if Lee's form slips, A.J. Burnett could very easily put away the defending champs.
Game 4 of the World Series is a pivotal one for the defending champion Phillies. After dropping Game 3 Saturday night, they'll need to win Sunday to avoid a huge 3-1 hole.
Unfortunately for the Phils, things seem stacked against them with Joe Blanton taking the hill against Yankees ace CC Sabathia. Can Philadelphia buck the odds and even the Fall Classic, or will New York have a chance to clinch its 27th championship Monday night?
After the jump, join the MLB FanHouse crew for a LIVE chat throughout Game 4, starting at 8 PM ET.
Playoff Pulse is our morning rundown of the night that was and the night that will be during the MLB postseason.
Looking Forward ...
Could some bad blood, or maybe even just a little chippiness, develop in the World Series? You wouldn't think so, especially with Derek Jeter and Jimmy Rollins and Ryan Howard and Alex Rodriguez looking so chummy at different times during Game 3.
But A-Rod was plunked, not once but twice, by Phillies pitchers Saturday night and then there was Jayson Werth's emphatic reaction to his second home run of the evening -- slamming his bat to the ground along the first-base line before entering his home run trot.
Boo! It's apropos that on Halloween night the World Series shifts to Philadelphia, a city known for all its booing over the years, for Game 3.
The Phillies and Yankees split the first two games of the Fall Classic in New York, so Saturday night the tone for the rest of the series could be set. As in Game 1, it's a pair of left-handers squaring off -- Andy Pettitte for the Yanks and 2008 World Series MVP Cole Hamels for the Phils.
Who will take the next step toward a title? Join the MLB FanHouse crew as we find out for a LIVE chat from first pitch to final out, starting at 7:45 PM ET after the jump.
Playoff Pulse is our morning rundown of the night that was and the night that will be during the MLB postseason.
Looking Forward ...
For the seventh time in his playoff career as a closer (1995-96 not included), Mariano Rivera made a second consecutive appearance of two innings or more Thursday, sealing it with a six-out save in Game 2 of the World Series after he shut the door on the Angels in Game 6 of the ALCS.
That, of course, is a tribute to Rivera's unrivaled excellence and his durability, but it may also reveal something about the state of the Yankees' bullpen.
The champagne is barely dry in the Yankees clubhouse, but the business of 2010 is already well under way. Three trades are in the books, a number of players have already filed for free agency and Bobby Abreu has a new deal with the Angels.
Hideki Matsui was named the Most Valuable Player in the 2009 World Series after a record-setting performance in the decisive Game 6. 
As if the first Game 6 in the World Series in six years wasn't enough to whet your appetite, it's 
Playoff Pulse is our morning rundown of the night that was and the night that will be during the 
It's now or never for the 
Playoff Pulse is our morning rundown of the night that was and the night that will be during the 
Game 4 of the World Series is a pivotal one for the defending champion 
Playoff Pulse is our morning rundown of the night that was and the night that will be during the 
Boo! It's apropos that on Halloween night the World Series shifts to Philadelphia, a city known for all its booing over the years, for Game 3.
Playoff Pulse is our morning rundown of the night that was and the night that will be during the 
