Utley keeps winning hand against the Yankees' ace

Frank Fitzpatrick

Nov. 2, 2009 (McClatchy-Tribune Regional News delivered by Newstex) -- Before the World Series resumed last night, many of the typical pregame questions focused on CC Sabathia, the Yankees lefthander who was set to pitch against the Phillies just three days after his previous start.

Was it too little rest? Was it wrong to pull an ace out of his season-long routine in November? Would he have his best fastball?

Afterward, all we really know is that Chase Utley had no problem with Sabathia's going on three days of rest.

In fact, the Phillies second baseman probably would like to see even more of the Yankees' redwood-size ace.

In Game 4 last night, he had an RBI double, a home run, and two RBIs against Sabathia, though it wasn't enough in a 7-4 Phillies loss that left the Yankees on the brink of a 27th world championship.

That production wasn't too different from what Utley did in Game 1 at Yankee Stadium. That night, he stroked a pair of home runs into the short right-field pavilion in a 6-1 Phillies win.

But they had been his only two Series hits until last night, when he saw Sabathia again -- a prospect that would dismay most lefthanded hitters.

"He's had some darn good numbers against lefthanders all year," pitcher Chad Durbin said of Utley. "He's going to grind things out. That's just the type of hitter he is. I don't think there's any pitcher in baseball who wants to have Utley up there against him in a high-pressure at-bat."

So Utley has no hits and no RBIs against the rest of the Yankees' staff and four hits -- three homers and a double -- and four RBIs off their best pitcher.

"CC is an outstanding pitcher," Utley, who did not meet with reporters last night, said after Game 1. "He's one of the best pitchers in the game. I thought we had a decent approach against him. I don't feel like we're intimidated. We all have confidence."

In his initial at-bat last night, after Shane Victorino had blooped a one-out double, Utley dug into the box with a little more fervor than usual. The squinty gaze he fixes on opposing pitchers seemed a little more intense, no doubt because this was a must-win situation for the Phils. He crouched menacingly and waited for a pitch he could handle.

He didn't wait long. Sabathia left a sinker up and on the inner half of the plate. Utley pounced on it like a hungry leopard, lacing a sinker to the wall in right-center and scoring Victorino with a run that immediately cut New York's advantage to 2-1.

"Like I said earlier, they're a good team," Sabathia said. "They have an American League lineup. You have to battle against them."

Utley came up against Sabathia again with two outs in the seventh. The Phils still trailed, by 4-2 now, and there was a good chance the heart of the Phils' order would not bat again.

Utley saw five straight sliders from Sabathia, who by then was over 100 pitches. The fifth was a little too far in -- for Sabathia, not Utley.

The Phils' No. 3 hitter turned quickly on the ball and sent it deep into the right-field seats. As a somewhat somnolent Citizens Bank Park crowd exploded with noise, the Yanks' lead was down to 4-3.

"That was a great at-bat by Chase," closer Brad Lidge said. "To get himself into that position with two strikes was something."

Curiously, Sabathia's slider was a pitch Utley had passed on at Yankee Stadium, opting instead to look for a fastball.

"I remember he was pitching me tough," Utley said of his Game 1 success. "He was throwing sinkers in, he was throwing sliders. The approach I had, the approach I was going to try to have against him, was to try to lay off the slider, because the slider is a tough one to hit on the barrel, and try to hit his fastball. And I was able to do that."

His success against Sabathia mirrored the increasing success he's had against lefthanders in his career.

"It's the way he hangs in there," Durbin said. "He waits for guys to make a mistake. He fights off some tough pitches. He made CC pay a couple of times."

By the bottom of the ninth, Sabathia was gone. And the disheartening loss ended with Utley helpless in the on-deck circle.

Contact staff writer Frank Fitzpatrick

at 215-854-5068 or ffitzpatrick@phillynews.com.

Newstex ID: KRTB-0160-39350084