The glorious run that brought the club its second world championship was in the books, and holding on to it could only hinder 2009.

Another reminder of that came yesterday as the Phils prepared to defend that 2008 crown in Game 1 of the World Series in New York. The differences between Yankee Stadium and Tampa's Tropicana Field were more than just the dramatic drop in climate. Last year, Games 1 and 2 were held indoors; 70 degrees and cozy. Game-time temp last night was a very damp 52 degrees.

And although the venue is the much celebrated and much more expensive new Yankee Stadium, two Philadelphia fans said it was like a cheesesteak on a hamburger roll. Yuck.

"Tampa's stadium was such a dump, but I'm not overly impressed with the inside of this stadium," said John Stevenson, a lifelong resident of South Philadelphia. "There's a lot of concrete. It's like the Vet. From the outside, it's nice. But inside, there's no atmosphere. If this was Philadelphia - Game 1 - the place would be on fire."

The Philly boys might have been a little harsh - or jaded from being around a sea of Yankees fans dressed in navy blue. The $1.3 billion stadium is a significant upgrade from the old Yankee Stadium. The concourses are larger and the bleacher seats aren't as remote as the ones at the other facility. The outfield scoreboards are magnificent.

Stevenson and his brother, Dan, sat in leftfield, a relay throw from Johnny Damon and Ben Francisco. Before the game, the brothers patrolled the area around the Bronx stadium wearing bright-red Phillies jackets, looking in vain for an interesting place to wet their whistles. Maybe it was the weather. Maybe they weren't in the right spot. Or maybe the 26 championships already won by the Yankees tempered the insanity.

"We went to two bars. Nothing. The overall vibe is flat," Dan Stevenson said. "When we were in Tampa, they were banging those cowbells, which was a pain, but at least they were into it. People here don't seem like they're into it."

Other observations:

* Metal detectors were set up along the rims of the lower-level sections behind home plate. With first lady Michelle Obama attending the game, the Secret Service was definitely in the house. Particularly those three sharpshooters stationed on the roof in right-centerfield. Funny, don't remember Laura Bush swinging by last year's World Series. Guess she was busy packing up the White House.

* The tradition of fans cheering each Yankees player until he's acknowledged never gets old. In the top of the first, the crowd goes position-by-position until the designated player waves his hand or tips his cap.

* A lone Japanese flag hung in rightfield where a number of fans of Yankees designated hitter Hideki Matsui congregated.

* The wind was so strong, it blew over the protective first-base screen during batting practice.

History lesson

When the Phillies were swept by the Yankees in 1950, they held the lead for all of one inning: the seventh in Game 3 to be specific. (A tip of the cap if you remember that lead was provided by Mike Goliat singling in Granny Hamner.)

After Chase Utley homered in the third and Lee shut down the Yanks the following two frames, the Phils already led for longer in this series than in '50. Now all they have to do is win the thing.

Food for thought

The $10 Budweisers were 220 calories a pop and the $5 bag of peanuts was 1,190. The cheesesteaks registered between 425 and 605 depending, I guess, on how much grease Carl was using for that particular sandwich.

Broken record

Utley, who homered in last year's Game 1 (and Game 3), is the first Phillies player to homer in multiple World Series. His homers off lefthander CC Sabathia were the first CC gave up to a lefthanded hitter at Yankee Stadium all season.

Calendar watch

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