New York — The New York Yankees And the Cleveland Guardians You will have to wait another day to determine your ALDS match. The winner-takes-all fifth game was postponed due to rain Monday night. The match will be at 4:07 p.m. ET on Tuesday. Winner goes to face Houston Astros at ALCS, which begins on Wednesday. The loser returns home.
Guardians manager Terry Francona said after Game 4.
Game 5 is ALDS’ second postponement. The second match was also postponed, resulting in matches being played 2-4 on three consecutive days. Game 5 will make it four matches in four days. Postponing gives the Bullpens – and both teams in general – a little extra rest before playing the winning contest or going home.
With all of that in mind, let’s take a stock after the rain from each team’s display stand heading into Game Five on Tuesday.
Starting Jugs: Nestor Curtis Vs Fuck
Right-backs Jameson Taillon and Aaron Civale were originally scheduled to start Game 5 on Monday night, but thanks to the downpour, the Yankees and Guardians have the option to use Game 2 starters — Nestor Cortes and Shane Bieber — on their three ‘ Tuesday break. Cleveland will announce the start of Game Five on Tuesday. The Yankees confirmed Curtis would start.
On Monday afternoon, Guardians manager Terry Francona indicated that Bieber would not play again unless they made it to the ALCS, although being able to use it on a short break in Game 5 should be tempting. Bieber put in a good showing in both post-season games and is simply the best player in Cleveland. Even on a short rest, it gives the team the best chance of winning the fifth game and continuing to play.
Generally, beginners with short stress early on, so instead of being good for 100 or so pitches, they hit the wall at 75-80 pitch. However, getting 75 or so Curtis (or Bieber) is better than the alternative. Taillon and Civale were expected to stay on short handlebars, so a shorter than usual handlebar start at Cortes (or Bieber) wouldn’t change the plan much.
In Game 2, Curtis caught the Guardians two runs in five rounds, and dominated them in two regular matches (three runs in 12 1/3 innings). However, he will be on short rest, and the Guardians will see him for the second time in less than a week. Fatigue and familiarity can tip the pendulum in favor of hitters.
“I trust his identity and his makeup, and I know he’s going to get out there and compete really well,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said of Curtis before game two kicked off. “Like that what he does really well is he loves to play the game. He’s very competitive, and I know he’s not going to get scared. He’s going to take it head on and let the chips fall where they can fall.”
Bieber has never started a short break in his career, and goalkeepers have handled him carefully after a shoulder injury last season – he played 17 of his 31 games with extra rest during the regular season. The Yankees have grabbed two runs in 5 2/3 innings in Game 2 and were excellent after letting Homer Giancarlo Stanton twice in the first half.
Bullpen Mode: A much-needed break for New York
Bullpen Cleveland was in much better shape heading into Game 5 than New York. The Guardians didn’t use setup man Trevor Stefan or James Karenczak, or nearest Emmanuel Klaas, in games 3 and 4, so all three will head to Game 5 with three days off. This prepares them to go into several roles each. Francona’s perfect promotion plan would probably be the start (Ceval or Bieber on a short break) from Stefan to Karencák to Klaas, with no one else involved.
The Yankees, on the other hand, have been working on their major painkillers hard in the past few days, and the postponement is giving the top players a much-needed break. They used five different painkillers in the entire series (not including Taillon in Game 2). Miguel Castro, Domingo Germain, and Lucas Lutegg are on the ALDS list but haven’t made it yet. Look at the stadium stats for New York’s top loyalists leading into Game Five, originally scheduled for Monday:
In Games 2-4, Peralta became the first Yankees loyalist to play three days in a row this season, and while he claimed he’d be available in Game 5, playing for four consecutive days rarely occurs in baseball now. Peralta is getting a rest and will once again face Josh Naylor and Andres Jimenez, Cleveland’s biggest left-wing power threat. He’s faced them in every game in the series and kept them unharmed.
It’s controversial that Holmes did not play a save position in Game 3 and may have cost the Yankees the game. After that, Boone said he would only use Holmes in emergencies because he came off a shoulder injury recently, and they didn’t want to push him for days on end. However, Boone said Holmes will be available in Game 5 despite his involvement in Game 4. Now, the rain is giving him a day to rest anyway.
“I’ll do it,” Boone said on Sunday of using Holmes in games 4 and 5 on consecutive days. “Tomorrow, yes, at home win or back, yes.”
It should be noted that Gerrit Cole threw 110 balls in seven games in the fourth game on Sunday, Boon told he was available on Monday. Boone said he would have hesitated to use it the day after the start, though Cole will now have a day off, using it off the playing field becomes more realistic. If the push starts, don’t be surprised to see Cole on the hill on Tuesday.
The Yankees were poised to enter Game Five on Monday with some concerns due to the recent workload of their relief arms. Now these guys are getting a night to rest. They’re not as comfortable as Steven, Karenshak and Claes for Cleveland, but they are. On paper, the Guardians still have the Bullpen advantage given their workloads, but that advantage won’t be nearly as great on Tuesday as it was on Monday.
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