DUGOUT: Rainout could have huge World Series implications

The already precarious starting-rotation situation of the New York Yankees has gotten even messier.

Before the Saturday night downpour in New York, the Yankees considered themselves to be in a must-win situation, even though they held a 3-2 series advantage against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

In an unusual move, yet not unprecedented by any stretch, the Yankees are working from a three-man rotation this postseason. CC Sabathia, AJ Burnett, and Andy Pettitte have made every postseason start for New York this year. Pettitte is scheduled to take Game 6 of the series, which was originally scheduled for last night.

If Game 7 is forced by the Angels tonight, New York will be forced to pitch Sabathia in what will become an elimination game for both teams. This would prohibit Sabathia from opening the World Series, and would ultimately reduce his number of possible starts from three to two.

This huge potential disadvantage was made even more threatening when the potential Game 7 was pushed from today to tomorrow. That would make it even more difficult for the Yankees' rotation to play at their full potential if they reached the World Series on Wednesday.

Thanks to the delay, the Angels now have an extra reason to force Game 7 besides ?simply? warding off elimination.

John Lackey pitched Game 5 in Los Angeles last Thursday. Pitching him on just two-days rest a la Derek Lowe in 2004 was out of the question. With the potential Game 7 being held tomorrow, Lackey might be able to pitch on three-days rest in the all-or-nothing showdown at Yankee Stadium.

Of course, all this drama could more or less be erased if the Yankees win tonight. And Los Angeles can forget about Lackey if they lose tonight.

The only team, it seems, that escapes all harm from this fateful rainout are the National League champion Philadelphia Phillies.

Despite not yet deciding how to shuffle their rotation for the World Series that starts on Wednesday (although Cliff Lee is almost certain to start Game 1), Philadelphia will have six fulls days of recuperation, revealing the full extent of the postseason's scheduling problems.

There is little evidence that teams in recent history are impacted by any extra rest. Fingers will quickly point, however, to the 2007 Colorado Rockies. Red-hot entering the World Series, Colorado made quick work of their league, finishing the NLCS a full eight days before their opponents were ready. Those eight days seemed to cool off the Rockies, as they would up being swept in four games by the Boston Red Sox.

Last year's Phillies, meanwhile, won the World Series despite having six days of rest between the NLCS and Fall Classic. The '95 Braves also won the World Series while enjoying six days of rest. The conflicting evidence can only mean one thing: the World Series is not decided by the number of days of rest a team enjoys, but by the talent of the team.

That said, outside forces can certainly have an impact, as well. The city of Philadelphia will be rooting vivaciously for the Angels tonight. Watching both Lackey and Sabathia pitch Game 7 on Monday night will render both of them unavailable for the start of the World Series, which, as mentioned before, greatly decreases their potential impact and gives Los Angeles a huge advantage before the Series even starts.

The Saturday night rain storm in New York could prove to be the most fateful weather event of this baseball season, forcing both teams to scramble to prepare their rotation for the World Series while not forgetting to win now.

All Philadelphia can do is sit back and smile. Fully rested, the Phillies are prepared to take on the battle-wearied champions of the American League, whomever that ends up being.

Andrew Kneeland is a junior at the Arizona Virtual Academy. He is an intern at the Green Valley News.