THE YANKS, THE 'STROS, HICKS & THE ALCS

It's happening, folks! After a bump in the road (the Rays waking up), the Astros finally move on to face the Yankees in the ALCS.

I don't know about you, but I was rooting for the Astros so we could have an incredible series coming up. With a combined 210 wins in the regular season, these two teams are powerhouses.

Source: Bleacher Report

We're also getting a rematch of the 2017 ALCS where the Yanks dropped a 3-2 lead, allowing the Astros to go on and win the World Series against the Dodgers. (Would have loved a Yankees v. Dodgers World Series, shame.)


The Astros definitely showed their vulnerability in the past few games. If Justin Verlander and Zack Greinke can get smacked around by the Rays, imagine what our Yankees hitters can do to them.

"It's going to be a battle. They've got a great team," Alex Bregman said of the Yankees.

Source: New York Post

Thanks to our sweep, our guys are fully rested with Masahiro Tanaka and Luis Severino ready to go in Games 1 and 2. We can also activate CC Sabathia and Aaron Hicks for the series. So the team is looking in great shape, while the Astros will have less rest going into Saturday's game.

What do we need to do? Score quickly and get into the bullpen early. Since the Astros' aces, especially Gerrit Cole, aren't going to be ready to go until at least Game 3 giving us an edge.

"The Yankees are obviously a formidable squad, Cole said after the game when asked about facing the Yankees. "They've got a lot of talent, a boatload of talent. That's just how they've always made. They've very stoic, they grind out a lot of at-bats. It's going to be a tough matchup."I'm excited and I hope you are too! Let the battle begin.

--Missy O'Rourke
BYB Contributor
Twitter: @missy_orourke