Recap: NY Yankees vs. LA Angels

Published online on Saturday, Oct. 24, 2009

Game 6 of the American League Championship Series between the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim and New York Yankees has been postponed due to rain.

The Yankees lead the best-of-seven series, 3-2, and this contest will be pushed back to Sunday at 8:20 p.m (et). LA's Joe Saunders and New York's Andy Pettitte were lined up to be the starters Saturday before the postponement. The pitching matchup for Sunday is expected to remain the same.

"The extra day we think could physically help him," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said of Pettitte. "He was on short day the last time. He's been good on extra day, too. So I don't really worry about him going on an extra day. We're going to stick with Andy."

Game 7, if needed, will now be played on Monday night at Yankee Stadium.

Los Angeles stayed alive with a thrilling Game 5 win on Thursday, as Kendry Morales' RBI single in the seventh inning capped a three-run rally that helped the Angels overtake the Yankees, 7-6, to force the series back to New York.

The Angels had taken a 4-0 lead after the first inning, but the Yankees stormed back with six runs in the top of the seventh to get to within nine outs of their 40th American League pennant. New York had another chance in the ninth, loading the bases with two outs, but Nick Swisher popped up to end the game and give LA its second win in the series.

The Yankees are looking for their first World Series appearance since losing to the Marlins in 2003, while the Angels have not been there since 2002, when they beat the Giants in a seven-game thriller for the club's lone championship.

Whichever team wins this series will take on the defending World Series champion Philadelphia Phillies in this season's Fall Classic. The Phillies dispatched of the Dodgers in five games in the NLCS for the second consecutive year. Philadelphia defeated Tampa Bay in five games in the 2008 World Series.

Game Notes