American League Championship Series: L.A. Angels vs. New York Yankees

When scanning potential storylines for the ALCS, it's unlikely too many people preferred the angle of "Bobby Abreu tries to punish his former teammates" over the resumption of Red Sox-Yankees unpleasantries, but it'll have to do. The Angels and Yankees showed few holes in their first-round wins, and there's little doubt that we're getting the best the American League has to offer.

It should be a fascinating matchup. The contrast in offensive styles between the Angels, who put pressure on the opposition by taking extra bases and forcing miscues, and the Yankees' power is always fun to watch. It will be on the two pitching staffs, neither of which did well against the other team's hitters in the 5-5 split of the season series, to keep those offenses in check.

The team that does a better job of that will be the last American League team standing. Let's start trying to figure out who that's going to be, shall we?

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Series Schedule

G1	Oct. 16	NYY 4, LAA 1 | Box | Olson | Price	7:57PM ET
G2	Oct. 17	NYY 4, LAA (13) | Box | Olson | Price	7:57PM ET
G3	Oct. 19	LAA 5, NYY 4 (11) | Box | Fletcher	4:13PM ET
G4	Oct. 20	NYY 10, LAA 1 | Box | Fletcher | Moore	7:57PM ET
G5	Oct. 22	LAA 7, NYY 6 | Box | Fletcher | Mariotti	7:57PM ET
G6	Oct. 25	NYY 5, LAA 2 | Box | Mariotti | Price	8:20PM ET

Lineup
No.	Yankees	Pos	Angels	Pos.
1	D. Jeter	SS	C. Figgins	3B
2	J. Damon	CF	H. Kendrick	2B
3	M. Teixeira	1B	B. Abreu	RF
4	A. Rodriguez	3B	V. Guerrero	DH
5	J. Posada	C	T. Hunter	CF
6	H. Matsui	DH	K. Morales	1B
7	N. Swisher	RF	J. Rivera	LF
8	R. Cano	2B	M. Napoli	C
9	M. Cabrera	CF	E. Aybar	SS
Rotation
1	C. Sabathia	L	J. Lackey	R
2	A. Burnett	R	J. Weaver	R
3	A. Pettitte	L	S. Kazmir	L
4	C. Gaudin	R	J. Saunders	L
CP	M. Rivera	R	B. Fuentes	L
SU	P. Hughes	R	K. Jepsen	R
SU	Chamberlain	R	D. Oliver	L

Why the Angels Will Win

With the Angels trailing Boston 5-2 late in Sunday's Game 3 at Fenway, I briefly began flashing ahead in the series. "A loss here means Jose Saunders against Jon Lester on Monday, then back to Anaheim where Josh Beckett can start and the Angels will be pressing to avoid another collapse against Boston and ..." I had already practically convinced myself that Boston was going to win the series before they had even won one game.

But that didn't happen. The Angels rallied for two in eighth, then three more in the ninth for a dramatic, come from behind win. Before that series began, Matt Snyder wrote that the Angels would beat Boston because of their balance. Against Boston, they got great starts fromJohn Lackey and Jered Weaver, great bullpen work from Darren Oliver and Brian Fuentes, and a slew of big hits up and down their starting lineup from Torii Hunter's big home run in Game 1 to Vladimir Guerrero's game-winning single in Game 3.

The Angels are hitting on all cylinders right now and they've exorcised their biggest postseason demon -- the Red Sox team that knocked them out of the playoffs in both 2007 and 2008. With Lackey and Weaver starting the first two games in Yankee Stadium, they have a real chance to steal a win and flip home-field advantage back their way. That could be a big advantage if CC Sabathia hits a wall like he did in the 2007 ALCS, especially because the Yankees are looking at going with Chad Gaudin as a fourth starter in this series.

Anyone that was sleeping on this Angels team because they play on the West Coast found out how deep and dangerous they are with their sweep of the Sox. If they keep clicking, not even the mighty Yankees can stop them.

-- Pat Lackey

Why the Yankees Will Win

There was a retro vibe to the Yankees' sweep of the Twins. If you didn't know any better, you'd think that you were watching a replay from the late '90s with the comeback wins spurred by power pitching, timely hitting and healthy sprinklings of luck. They were present-day games, though, and the formula they used against Minnesota is one that will lead them to their first World Series since 2003.

The pitching comes first, since they wouldn't have had a chance to come back without such strong mound work. CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett and Andy Pettitte each turned in sterling starts that kept games well within reach for an offense that scuffled for long stretches of games against Minnesota. They pounded the strike zone, kept runners off the bases and combined for 20 strikeouts in 19 combined innings.

The Angels won't get any breaks when the Yankees go to the bullpen. Phil Hughes, Mariano Rivera, David Robertson and, now, Joba Chamberlain keep the radar guns popping and ensure that the Yankees will never have to match up a tiring pitcher against Kendry Morales, Torii Hunter or Bobby Abreu. Joe Girardi opened himself up to criticism with quick hooks against the Twins, but his bullpen made him look good as they shut down games in the late innings.

They needed to do that because the vaunted Yankee offense was largely absent in the first round. Relying on home runs from Alex Rodriguez isn't going to beat the Angels, but there's little reason to believe that the other bats will remain as quiet as they did in the three games with the Twins. The hits and walks will start coming and the Angels pitchers will be taxed into throwing more pitches and reaching into their bullpen earlier than they had to against the Red Sox.

That's a dangerous proposition for them. Brian Fuentes is hardly a sure thing in the ninth inning, and it is often a rocky path to get the ball into his hands. The Yankees won't make it any easier by sending up several switch-hitters who will extend at-bats until they get a mistake that they can punish.

The Yankees have failed against the Angels twice in their playoff past, but each time they were the thinner team. That's not the case this time around and, ultimately, the deep Yankee roster will be what tarnishes the halo.