After becoming the 10th team in MLB history to overturn a 2-0 deficit in the ALDS with a 5-2 win over the Cleveland Indians in Game 5 on Wednesday night, the New York Yankees are four wins away from a World Series berth, which would be the 41st time in franchise history that they would play in the Fall Classic.
That’s staggering.
Waiting for them in the LCS is the Houston Astros, who are making their first appearance in the ALCS since switching over from the National League in 2013 after disposing of the Boston Red Sox in four games in the ALDS. It is just the fourth time in franchise history that the Astros have made it to a league championship series and the first time since 2005, when they made their only World Series appearance, though they were swept by the Chicago White Sox.
By contrast, since the league championship series’ were instituted by Major League Baseball in 1969, the Yankees have made the ALCS 22 times.
Put the pedigrees of both franchises to the side for a moment though because they really don’t matter.
Both of these teams feature a young core that is getting its first taste of life on Major League Baseball’s largest stages.
Here is what you need to know about the upcoming series:
ALCS Schedule, TV, Predicted starters
Game 1: Friday, Oct. 13 @ Houston, 8:08 p.m. ET
TV: FS1
Projected pitchers: Sonny Gray (NYY) vs. Dallas Keuchel (HOU)
Game 2: Saturday, Oct. 14 @ Houston, 4 p.m.
TV: FOX
Projected pitchers: Masahiro Tanaka (NYY) vs. Justin Verlander (HOU)
Game 3: Monday, Oct. 16 @ New York, 8 p.m.
TV: FS1
Projected pitchers: Luis Severino (NYY) vs. Lance McCullers (HOU)
Game 4: Tuesday, Oct. 17 @ New York, Time TBD
TV: FOX or FS1
Projected pitchers: CC Sabathia (NYY) vs. Dallas Keuchel
Game 5 (if necessary): Wednesday, Oct. 18 @ New York, Time TBD
TV: FOX or FS1
Projected pitchers: Sonny Gray (NYY) vs. Justin Verlander (HOU)
Game 6 (if necessary): Friday, Oct. 20 @ Houston, Time TBD
TV: FOX or FS1
Projected pitchers: Masahiro Tanaka (NYY) vs. Lance McCullers (HOU)
Game 7 (if necessary): Saturday, Oct. 21 @ Houston, Time TBD
TV: FOX or FS1
Projected pitchers: CC Sabathia (NYY) vs. Dallas Keuchel (HOU)
In seven regular-season meetings in 2017, the Astros came out victorious five times. They were able to get to Yankees pitching, scoring five or more runs five times (4-1 record) while accruing a .286 team batting average with 11 home runs.
Here is how the projected lineups perform against each other:
Yankees 2017 stats vs. Astros
1. Brett Gardner: 28 AB, .429 BA, .452 OBP, 2 HR, 8 RBI
2. Aaron Judge: 22 AB, .273 BA, .429 OBP, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 11 K’s
3. Didi Gregorius: 28 AB, .286 BA, 1 HR, 6 RBI
4. Gary Sanchez: 20 AB, .300 BA, 2 RBI, 10 K’s
5. Greg Bird: 0 AB
6. Starlin Castro: 18 AB, .222 BA, .222 OBP, 1 HR, 4 RBI
7. Aaron Hicks: 8 AB, .125 BA, .417 OBP, 4 BB’s
8. Jacoby Ellsbury: 26 AB, .192 BA, 3 RBI
9. Todd Frazier: 0 AB
Astros 2017 stats vs. Astros
1. George Springer: 30 AB, .300 BA, 2 HR, 3 RBI, 6 XBH
2. Josh Reddick: 21 AB, .333 BA, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 4 XBH
3. Jose Altuve: 28 AB, .250 BA, 1 XBH, 2 RBI, 2 SB
4. Carlos Correa: 28 AB, .500 BA, .531 OBP, 2 HR, 10 RBI
5. Marwin Gonzalez: 17 AB, .294 BA, 1 HR, 5 RBI
6. Alex Bregman: 24 AB, .167 BA, 1 HR, 4 RBI
7. Yuli Gurriel: 22 AB, .409 BA, 2 HR, 7 RBI
8. Evan Gattis: 12 AB, .333 BA, 1 HR, 3 RBI
9. Brian McCann: 19 AB, .158 BA, 1 HR, 3 RBI
