Angels Favored to Rebound In Game Five

NFL News - October 22nd, 2009 - Written by John

Now that half of the World Series grid is complete, the New York Yankees try to wrap up their side of the bracket Thursday night. With a 3-1 lead over the Los Angeles Angels, A.J. Burnett gets the ball in Anaheim with a chance to clinch the best-of-seven series, where they will go on to face the Philadelphia Phillies in the championship series.

In a match-up similar to the NLCS, the unanimous favorite has dominated nearly every game. The Yankees have outscored Los Angeles 22-10 and are batting 20 points higher overall in the playoffs. The Angels have only won one game in the ALCS and that came via extra innings. They haven't won an ALCS game in regulation since 2002, the year they went on to win the World Series. It's been a long road since then, most recently in a 10-1 route on Tuesday.

Looking at the scoreboard, it would appear that the Yankees hammered the Angels without incident, but Los Angeles fans are far more skeptical. Angel Stadium burst into boos after two inexplicable missed calls by the umpires that should've punched two Yankee runners out. It probably didn't alter the outcome of the game, but did provide plenty of conversation between games. Los Angeles will need to use that fire to climb back in the series, if for nothing else than pride.

MLB Betting Lines show New York as the underdog in this game, according the BetUS. They are receiving 1 1/2 runs with an over/under of 8 1/2. Taking the Angels minus the runs, however, returns a decent payout of +175, while taking the Yankees with the runs pays -210.

The Yankees are giant favorites to win the series, with a return of -2000 on BetUS. But they are in a situation similar to 2004, when they blew a 3-0 lead over the Boston Red Sox and missed the World Series. Many current players, like Derek Jeter, are were on that team and still feel the burn of the loss.

“If you have the opportunity to get something over with, you’d like to do it,” the New York captain said. “It’s not always going to happen.”

They will have three chances to exorcise those demons, starting Thursday with part of their $250 million pitching package they inherited last offseason. Burnett will be on the mound for the third time this postseason. He has yet to have a decision despite a 2.19 ERA and is 2-2 lifetime against the Angels. He was the starting pitcher when Los Angeles got their lone win, but pitched well and got a no-decision.

John Lackey will be on the lump for Los Angeles. He is 1-1 in the '09 playoffs, his lone loss coming in Game One against the Yankees.

Odds are not in the Angels' favor. Only six of the 28 teams to fall behind 3-1 in the ALCS since it was instituted in 1995 have rallied to win.

“The mountain is big, period,” Los Angeles center fielder Torii Hunter said on Yahoo! Sports. “But we know baseball can turn around at any time. We’ve been wanting that since our first game (against the Yankees). We haven’t quite got there yet, but it’s getting late. That bell is about to ring, so it’s time to get it done.”

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