Handicapping MLB Championship Series

In their only two previous playoff battles, the Los Angeles Angels beat the powerful New York Yankees at their own game, hitting .323 with 21 home runs in divisional series victories in 2002 and 2005.

The scary thing for the Yankees faithful is the 2009 edition of the Angels could be the deepest, most diverse offence the franchise has sent to the post-season.

If you want speed, there are six players — led by Chone Figgins — who stole 11 or more bases in the regular season. If you want power, there were six Angels who reached 15 home runs. And if you want contact hitters, six regulars batted .290 or better.

Throw in the fact Los Angeles stole 17 bases against the Yankees in 10 regular-season meetings and it appears Angels fans can start gearing up for the sale of World Series tickets, right?

Not so fast. New York is still a powerful outfit after leading the American League this season in home runs and runs scored. They are the only team in the majors to win 100 games (103, in fact). And they took three of four regular-season meetings against the Angels at new Yankee Stadium, where the two teams will open the best-of-seven AL Championship Series on Friday at 7:57 p.m. ET.

Elsewhere, the National League Championship Series is a rematch from 2008, with Fredericton's Matt Stairs and the Philadelphia Phillies looking to oust Toronto's Russell Martin and the Los Angeles Dodgers for the second consecutive fall.

Stairs's prodigious blast — a two-run, pinch-hit homer to right-centre field in the eighth inning of Game 4 of last year's NLCS —brought Phillies fans out of their seats at Dodger Stadium, in Philadelphia and across Canada. The Phillies took a 3-1 series lead and went on to win Game 5 en route to their first World Series title since 1980.

This time, they have an added weapon on the mound in left-hander Cliff Lee, who didn't face the Dodgers after arriving in a July 29 trade from Cleveland. He won seven of 11 decisions with three complete games in 12 starts with Philadelphia, which captured a third consecutive National League East title.

Led by Lee, the Phillies' starting rotation is deemed superior, while the offence boasts a quartet of 30-homer men: Ryan Howard, Raul Ibanez, Jayson Werth and Chase Utley.

However, the NL West champion Dodgers believe they are better equipped for this championship series, citing home-field advantage and two lefties of their own in Clayton Kershaw and Randy Wolf, who will attempt to neutralize the potent left-handed bats of Howard and Utley.

Game 1 of the best-of-seven series is set for Thursday at Los Angeles at 5:07 p.m. PT.

Here's a breakdown of the two championship series:

American League Championship Series: Los Angeles Angels vs New York Yankees

• Home-field advantage: New York
• Regular-season record: Los Angeles — 97-65 (1st in AL West); New York — 103-59 (1st in AL East)
• Season series: Tied 5-5
• How they got here: Los Angeles — swept Boston 3-0 in best-of-five AL Division Series; New York — swept Minnesota 3-0 in best-of-five ALDS
• Last playoff meeting: 2005 ALDS, Angels won best-of-five 3-2
• Series probable pitchers (Games 1-3): Los Angeles — John Lackey, Joe Saunders, Jered Weaver; New York — CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, Andy Pettitte
• Who's hot: Los Angeles — OF Bobby Abreu (went 5-for-9 in ALDS with two doubles and four walks); New York — 3B Alex Rodriguez (hit .455 in ALDS with two homers and six RBI in three games)
• Who's not: Los Angeles — 3B Chone Figgins (0-for-12 in ALDS with one run and zero stolen bases); New York — OF Johnny Damon (1-for-12 with four strikeouts in ALDS)
• Injuries: Los Angeles — RP Jason Bulger (right shoulder, day to day), RP Scot Shields (left knee surgery, out for season); New York — OF Xavier Nady (right elbow surgery, out for season), SP Chien-Ming Wang (right shoulder surgery, out for season)

Notes: New York has won only four season series against Los Angeles since 1987, including two this season … The Angels' 148 stolen bases were the third most in the majors this season, while the Yankees placed sixth in the 14-team AL by throwing out 29 per cent of basestealers … New York had a 5-11 record when allowing three or more stolen bases in a game, and went 12-17 when giving up two or more thefts in a contest, according to baseball-reference.com … The Yankees spent $423.5 million US last winter on long-term contracts for first baseman Mark Teixeira and pitchers CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett

National League Championship Series: Los Angeles Dodgers vs Philadelphia Phillies

• Home-field advantage: Los Angeles
• Regular-season record: Los Angeles — 95-67 (1st in NL West); Philadelphia — 93-69 (1st in NL East)
• Season series: Dodgers won 4-3
• How they got here: Los Angeles — swept St. Louis 3-0 in NLDS; Philadelphia — defeated Colorado 3-1 in NLDS
• Last playoff meeting: 2008 NLCS, Philadelphia won best-of-seven 4-1
• Series probable pitchers (Games 1-3): Los Angeles — Clayton Kershaw, Vicente Padilla, Hiroki Kuroda; Philadelphia — Cole Hamels, Pedro Martinez, Cliff Lee
• Who's hot: Los Angeles — OF Andre Ethier (went 6-for-12 with two doubles, a triple, two homers and five runs scored in NLDS); Philadelphia — 2B Chase Utley (went 6-for-14 with a home run, five runs scored and four walks in NLDS)
• Who's not: Los Angeles — OF Matt Kemp (hit .143 in 14 at-bats in NLDS with one homer, eight strikeouts); Philadelphia — SS Jimmy Rollins (hit .263 with one run, five strikeouts in 19 at-bats in NLDS)
• Injuries: Los Angeles — RP Charlie Haegar (bruised right knee, day to day); Philadelphia — SP Jamie Moyer (left groin strain, out for season), RP Chan Ho Park (strained right hamstring, day to day), RP J.C. Romero (left elbow tendinitis, out for season)

Notes: Teams are meeting in NLCS for fifth time (1977-78, 1983, 2008) … Phillies hit 224 home runs this season to Dodgers' 145. It's the largest disparity between NLCS opponents since 1987 (Giants 205, Cardinals 94) … Dodgers SP Hiroki Kuroda has recovered from herniated disc in neck and could start Game 3 on Oct. 18 at Philadelphia. He was the team's best pitcher in 2008 playoffs (1.46 ERA in two starts) … Dodgers went 27-20 against left-handed starters this season, compared with 68-47 against righties … Philadelphia's road record practically matched Los Angeles' home mark (50-31).