Yankees Eliminate Guardians, Set Up ALCS Showdown With Astros
After enduring heartbreaking losses in the 2020 ALDS and the 2021 AL Wild Card Game, the New York Yankees are finally back in the ALCS. And they’ll meet a very familiar opponent in the Houston Astros.
It took consecutive elimination game victories over the feisty and resilient Cleveland Guardians in the ALDS, but the Yankees prevailed by eliminating Terry Francona’s team for the third time in six years. 27-year-old Nester Cortés Jr. put another cherry on top of his breakout year by coming through when the Pinstripes needed it most.
In the decisive Game 5 against the Guardians, he pitched five innings and struck out two, allowing just a trio of hits and one earned run. Giancarlo Stanton’s three-run homer in the first inning was all the offense the Pinstripes would have needed. But likely AL MVP Aaron Judge hit a solo shot in the bottom of the second, and Anthony Rizzo added a pivotal RBI single to score Gleyber Torres in the fifth.
The Empire State launched sports betting back in January, and the Yankees are one of the top teams that customers can bet on through the FanDuel New York app. The sportsbook is running a special offer where if you bet $5, you’ll earn $150 and a three-month NBA League Pass.
Among the final four teams, FanDuel New York gives the Yankees second-best odds of winning the 2022 World Series at +260, behind only the Astros (+160). The San Diego Padres are behind the Yankees at +310, and the Philadelphia Phillies have the lowest odds at +380.
Third Time’s A Charm For Yankees?
New York will meet the team that eliminated them in the 2017 ALCS and in the 2019 ALCS. Finally, Aaron Boone and the Yankees have earned another shot at defeating a team that is playing in their sixth consecutive ALCS.
2022 marks the Yankees’ fifth trip to the ALCS since 2010, yet they’ve lost every single series.
After winning the 2009 World Series, New York was dethroned by the Texas Rangers in six games in the ALCS. Two years later, the Justin Verlander-led Detroit Tigers soundly defeated the Yankees in a four-game sweep to claim the AL pennant.
Despite holding a 3-2 series lead over Houston in the 2017 ALCS, the Yankees were unable to close the door. The Astros rallied for consecutive wins to take the pennant en route to the franchise’s first World Series championship.
Two years later, José Altuve hit a two-run walk-off homer off of Yankees star closer Aroldis Chapman in Game 6 of the 2019 ALCS to send Houston back to the World Series. The Astros wound up losing the Fall Classic to the Washington Nationals in seven games.
The Yankees viewed former Astros ace Gerrit Cole as one of the final pieces needed to get over their Kryptonite. In the 2019 offseason, Cole signed a mammoth nine-year contract worth $324 million.
Though Cole has mostly lived up to that contract through three seasons, the Yankees would have to wait three long years to finally get a) another shot at the Astros and b) another appearance in the ALCS.
Both Cole and Cortés enjoyed phenomenal years for the Yankees, but the AL Cy Young is most certainly going to be the Astros ace in Verlander. The future Hall of Famer had a historic year in his age-39 season, going 18-4 with a ridiculous 1.75 ERA and 185 strikeouts.
But make no mistake: Both teams are practically evenly matched from top to bottom. The Astros have the more balanced lineup, but the Yankees have the league’s top hitter of 2022 in Judge, who hit a single-season AL record 62 home runs.
Houston may have the advantage in the rotation, but it’s hard to match the Yankees’ elite bullpen led by Clay Holmes, Clarke Schmidt, Wandy Peralta and Lucas Luetge.
The Astros won the season series over the Yankees 5-2. But as the San Diego Padres showed in their upset of the 111-win Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLDS, the regular season results mean nothing come October.
Cole is in year three of a massive contract. Judge is having the season of a lifetime in The Bronx. Will this finally be the year the Yankees get back to the Fall Classic, or will it conclude with another postseason heartbreak? Stay tuned.
