It doesn't take much for New York fans to get a little anxious, but lest they get comfortable with cliches like "it was only one game," here are 10 reasons to be a bit skeptical after falling behind the Phillies 1-0 in the World Series.

1. Losing Game 1 at home: Teams that win the opener have captured the entire World Series at a 62 percent clip since 1903, but winning the first serve has been a much bigger advantage in recent years. Game 1 winners have won the Fall Classic six straight times and 11 of the last 12. The 2001 and '03 Yankees both lost their openers — one on the road and one at home — en route to eventual defeat.

2. A.J. Burnett(notes) starting Game 2: Eighty million sure doesn't go as far as it used to. Burnett has struggled with his control during the postseason — well, his entire career actually — and his start in ALCS Game 5 featured a bomb of a first inning. It's entirely possible that he'll perform well tonight, but his presence doesn't inspire the type of confidence you'd usually ask from someone in his rotation spot or at his salary level.  

3. CC neutralized: CC Sabathia(notes) was the Yankees' biggest trump card in the first two rounds, fueling his team to three victories that seemed almost automatic. Though he pitched well on Wednesday, Cliff Lee(notes) and the Phillies finally stepped up with an antidote and deflected the biggest bullet in New York's rotation.

4. Cliff Lee isn't going anywhere: Let's make this simple. Four postseason starts. 0.54 ERA. 30 strikeouts in 33 1/3 innings. Two more possible turns in this World Series.  Any more questions?

5. Poor Phil Hughes(notes): Though he developed into a reliable bridge to Mariano Rivera(notes) during this season, the young reliever has been shaky in his past two appearances, getting only one out while allowing three earned runs via two hits and three walks. Not exactly the time for an emerging star in the bullpen to start struggling. 

6. Bottom of lineup bottoming out: The trio of Robinson Cano(notes), Melky Cabrera(notes) and Nick Swisher(notes) went 0-for-9 on Wednesday night and with the exception of Cabrera's ALCS, has been notably nonproductive this postseason. The Yankees' lineup depth could be a big advantage over Philadelphia, but unless that black hole closes up it certainly won't be.

7. Disappearing DH: After tonight's game, the series will head to Philadelphia where neither team will have the luxury of the designated hitter. For a Yankees' fan base that has become terrified of Joe Girardi's next call to the bullpen, having him manage his pitchers under National League rules has to rank as a scary thought.

8. Absent A-Rod? As I said after Game 1, there's no reason to push the panic button or get down on Alex Rodriguez(notes) after an 0-for-4, three-strikeout night. However, it's perfectly  acceptable to stress over who will replace his production in the lineup if he struggles a few games. As much as he'd like to, A-Rod can't carry the team every game. 

9. Leering lefties: Coming into Wednesday night's game, Sabathia had not allowed a home run to a left-hander at the new Yankee Stadium. Chase Utley(notes) changed all that with two home runs and the prospect of having both Utley and Ryan Howard(notes) (2-for-5, two doubles) aiming for that right field fence for three more games (if necessary) has to be a frightening one.

10. Philadelphia is tough: New York fans are always going to be confident their teams can beat all comers, but I think the No. 27 dreams were halted a little bit by Game 1's realization that the Phillies are defending world champs for a reason. The king stay the king and to change that paradigm, the Yankees have to come up with an extraordinary effort above and beyond what it took to beat Minnesota and Los Angeles. Starting tonight.

A big BLS head nod to The Fightins for the facepalm screencap.

Related: 2009 postseason on the Stew, 2009 World Series on the Stew