Following last night’s game between the Dodgers and the Phillies, the Yankees know what lies ahead of them if they win their current series with the Angels: The Philadelphia Phillies. 
The Phillies are last year’s World Series Champions, and the Yankees would love to get a piece of them. If the Yankees want to have the best chance of knocking the Phillies off of their thrones, they are going to have to win game 5 tonight against the Angels. If they do not win tonight, they will have a shorter rest period between this series and next series, and that could make a significant difference in the series ahead.
Because the Phillies could possibly have 4 more days off than the Yankees, they have a good chance to come into the first game of the World Series much fresher, and they could get off to a hot start. Because that first game is in New York, the Yankees need to win that game to preserve homefield advantage. If they don’t, the homefield advantage shifts, and the series can take a totally different turn.
If the Yankees want to prevent a calamity from happening in the next series, they need to wrap things up tonight in LA. They need to continue to take care of business like they have, and they definitely don’t want to give the Angels any hope of coming back and stealing this series.
Right now the Yankees are in the perfect position to finish the series tonight, so that they can get well-rested for the Phillies. If they do not seize their opportunity, the chances of getting a World Series Championship back to New York will be that much harder.
Filed under: MLB
