2009 American League Championship Series

New York Yankees vs. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim † Game 6 was originally scheduled to be played on Saturday, October 24, but was postponed because of rain. ==Game summaries==

Game 1 {{Linescore||Date= October 16, 2009 |Time= 7:57 pm (EDT) |Location= Yankee Stadium in Bronx, New York On a blustery night where the official game time temperature was , starter CC Sabathia limited the Angels to one run on four hits and a walk in eight innings, striking out seven in a 4–1 Yankee win. drawing more attention to the argument for instant replay in baseball. Game 5 {{Linescore||Date= October 22, 2009 |Time= 4:57 pm (PDT) |Location= Angel Stadium of Anaheim in Anaheim, California Unlike the previous four games, this time the Angels scored first. With Chone Figgins on third base and Bobby Abreu on first, Torii Hunter singled to center field, scoring both Figgins and Abreu. Hunter then scored on an RBI double by Vladimir Guerrero, followed by a Kendrys Morales RBI single that scored Guerrero from second. All this was done before the first out was recorded. From that point on, neither starter—John Lackey for the Angels and A. J. Burnett for the Yankees—allowed a run until the seventh inning. In the top half of that inning, Lackey worked into a bases-loaded jam with two outs when manager Mike Scioscia replaced him with Darren Oliver. Mark Teixeira connected with Oliver's first pitch for a double that scored all three inherited runners—Melky Cabrera, Jorge Posada, and Derek Jeter. After an intentional walk to Alex Rodriguez, Hideki Matsui singled, scoring Teixeira and tying the game. Oliver was replaced with Kevin Jepsen, who yielded a triple to Robinson Canó that scored Rodriguez and Matsui, giving the Yankees a two-run lead. In the bottom half of the seventh, Abreu hit an RBI groundout that scored Jeff Mathis from third. Hunter then drew a walk, followed by a Guerrero single that scored Erick Aybar, and a Morales single that scored Hunter, giving the Angels a one-run lead. The Yankees threatened Angels closer Brian Fuentes in the ninth inning. With two outs, Fuentes loaded the bases, but Nick Swisher popped out to end the game. As of today, this remains the Angels last post-season victory. Game 6 {{Linescore||Date= October 25, 2009 |Time= 8:20 pm (EDT) |Location= Yankee Stadium in Bronx, New York Game 6 was originally scheduled to be played on Saturday, October 24, but was postponed because of rain. Angels gaffes once again proved costly. In the top of the second, baserunner Vladimir Guerrero ran too far from first base on a fly ball out and was doubled off. The game remained scoreless until the top of the third inning when Bobby Abreu singled home Jeff Mathis, who singled to lead off and moved to second on a groundout, to give the Angels the early lead. The Yankees left six men on base in the first and second innings before they finally broke through in the bottom of the fourth after Johnny Damon lined a two-run single with the bases loaded off of Joe Saunders to give them the lead for the remainder of the game. A single reloaded the bases before Alex Rodriguez walked to force in another run. Saunders was then removed in favor of Darren Oliver, who pitched shutout innings. Andy Pettitte pitched a strong game, allowing one run in innings while striking out six. Mariano Rivera entered the game in the eighth inning for a six-out save. Chone Figgins hit a leadoff single in the eighth, moved to second on a groundout and scored on a Guerrero single with two outs to close the gap to 3–2. In the bottom of the eighth, Robinson Cano drew a leadoff walk off of Ervin Santana, who was relieved by Scott Kazmir. The Angels misfielded two sacrifice bunts by the Yankees, a fielding error by Howie Kendrick and a throwing error by pitcher Scott Kazmir, allowing a run to score. A walk loaded the bases before Mark Teixeira's sacrifice fly made it 5–2 Yankees. Rivera retired the side in the ninth to record the Yankees' 40th American League pennant. Composite box 2009 ALCS (4–2): New York Yankees over Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim ==Aftermath==

A week and a half later, the Yankees would defeat the Philadelphia Phillies in the World Series in six games. It was the fifth and final ring for the Core Four era Yankees (fourth for Posada who was left off the playoff roster in 1996) and the only one for star players such as Alex Rodriguez, CC Sabathia, and Hideki Matsui, the latter of which who won the World Series MVP. It was the team's 27th World Series and their last to date; the Yankees have been to the ALCS six times since (2010, 2012, 2017, 2019, 2022, 2024), losing on each occasion until 2024. In regards to Matsui, on December 16, 2009, the 2009 World Series MVP agreed to a one-year deal with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim worth $6.5 million. Matsui told Yomiuri Shimbun that he "loved the Yankees the best" but that he no longer felt valued and when his agent called to negotiate, "The Yankees had nothing prepared [in terms of contract conditions]." He made up his mind to sign with the Angels quickly. "I really felt their high expectations of me," he said. On April 13, 2010, Matsui returned to Yankee Stadium as a member of the Angels and received his championship ring and a long standing ovation. The 2009 American League Championship Series marked the end of the most successful era in Angels franchise history. From 2002 to 2009, they made six postseason appearances, which was highlighted by the by team winning the 2002 American League pennant and World Series. Before 2002, they had been to the postseason just three times in franchise history (1979, 1982, and 1986), never winning a postseason series. Since 2009, the Angels have made the postseason just once (in 2014) and have not won a postseason game since Game 5 of the 2009 ALCS. ==Notes==