Yankees Ready for Clash With Orioles
As Derek Jeter said after the regular season concluded Wednesday, "now the season begins!"
While it wasn't an easy ride for the Yankees in 2012, and they come into October with plenty of worts; fact is the Bronx Bombers are here - back in the postseason for the 16th time in the last 17 years. Jeter and his Yankees teammates are now focused on winning the franchises 28th World Series title, and sixth in the Jeter era.
Standing in New York's way is the Baltimore Orioles, a very familar foe, who gave the Yankees all they could handle in the regular season, as the squad's split their 18 games, 9-9. Now they will have five games to determine who will have the right to advance to the ALCS.
The Orioles are a gritty lot. Forget the fact that they lost two of three to the Rays in the final series of the regular season, this Orioles team can and will create a lot of problems for New York. The O's roster doesn't jump out at you, but they won 93 games for a reason, and dismantled the two-time defending AL champion Texas Rangers in the Wild Card game just to get to this round.
On paper the Orioles lack a true stud in their starting rotation. Wei-Yen Chen won 12 games for the O's, but pitched to a 4.02 ERA. The fact is the O's pitching staff, while it may not have a true number 1, they keep their team in the game, pitching to a team 3.90 ERA.
The big plus for the O's pitching staff is the bullpen. Baltimore has five relievers with ERA's under 2.50, led by closer Jim Johnson, who burst onto the scene this year with 51 saves. The Yankees hitters have had their issues with Baltimore's pen, particularly Nick Swisher, who needs to have a big postseason this year to remain with the team. Swisher is 1-for-50 against these five relievers.
Swisher isn't the only one who has struggled. Russel Martin hit .208 against Baltimore, A-Rod had only two homers and five RBI against them, while Mark Teixeira (.244 vs. Balt.) and Raul Ibanez (.154 vs. Balt) have had their issues as well.
The key to this series for the Yankees from an offensive standpoint are Derek Jeter and Ichiro. Both provide the uncanny ability to get on base and create runs for the Yankees. If Jeter and Ichiro have a big series, the Yankees will walk away easily in this match-up. If the Orioles, somehow contain their effectiveness, it could be a long series for New York.
Then their is the Yankees rotation. Throughout the year the Yankees have had issues with their rotation. Inconsistency from Phil Hughes, Ivan Nova and Freddy Garcia, coupled with the long absence of Andy Pettitte gave Bombers fans plenty to worry about.
Now, Pettitte is back, and will start game two in Baltimore, before manager Joe Girardi turns the ball over to the Yankees surprising best pitcher Hiroki Kuroda (16-11, 3.32 ERA) in game three. If there is a game four, the Yankees are scheduled to turn to Phil Hughes. However, if the Yankees are desperate for a win in this series, don't be shocked to see them go back to CC Sabathia on short rest to either end the series or force a game five.
It is worth noting that the Yankees left Nova off the roster for this round. Nova was terrible this year, pitching to a 5.02 ERA, and never once resembled the young flame-thrower from 2011.
With all of the attention on the Yankees' rotation, the microscope will be huge on Sabathia. This year, Sabahtia struggled against Baltimore, posting an 0-2 record with a 6.83 ERA. He will have to figure it out on Sunday night if he is going to get this Yankees team in front in this series.
Another key to this Yankee postseason run: the bullpen. How Rafael Soriano pitches in the closers role in the most important games of the year will go a long way to determining the outcome of this years run. Remember there is no Mariano Rivera, lost for the year back in May. While Soriano pitched well in his stead, now is the time for Soriano to earn his pinstripes.
The Orioles offense is very potent, especially at Camden Yards, where they have hit 127 home runs.
Mark Reynolds, Adam Jones, J.J. Hardy and Matt Wieters all had success against the Yankees pitching staff, and if they get hot again, it won't be a lot of fun for the boys from the Bronx.
Expect a very tight series that will likely go five games. The Orioles have a lot of momentum coming into this series. They have nothing to lose, they are not the favorites, with a group of young kids who are playing in the postseason for the first time. Keep in mind the O's might even have the better manager in Buck Schowalter; however while Schowalter has been great in the regular season, he has never managed a team to the LCS.
I smell an upset in this series: Orioles in five.
Standing in New York's way is the Baltimore Orioles, a very familar foe, who gave the Yankees all they could handle in the regular season, as the squad's split their 18 games, 9-9. Now they will have five games to determine who will have the right to advance to the ALCS.
The Orioles are a gritty lot. Forget the fact that they lost two of three to the Rays in the final series of the regular season, this Orioles team can and will create a lot of problems for New York. The O's roster doesn't jump out at you, but they won 93 games for a reason, and dismantled the two-time defending AL champion Texas Rangers in the Wild Card game just to get to this round.
On paper the Orioles lack a true stud in their starting rotation. Wei-Yen Chen won 12 games for the O's, but pitched to a 4.02 ERA. The fact is the O's pitching staff, while it may not have a true number 1, they keep their team in the game, pitching to a team 3.90 ERA.
The big plus for the O's pitching staff is the bullpen. Baltimore has five relievers with ERA's under 2.50, led by closer Jim Johnson, who burst onto the scene this year with 51 saves. The Yankees hitters have had their issues with Baltimore's pen, particularly Nick Swisher, who needs to have a big postseason this year to remain with the team. Swisher is 1-for-50 against these five relievers.
Swisher isn't the only one who has struggled. Russel Martin hit .208 against Baltimore, A-Rod had only two homers and five RBI against them, while Mark Teixeira (.244 vs. Balt.) and Raul Ibanez (.154 vs. Balt) have had their issues as well.
The key to this series for the Yankees from an offensive standpoint are Derek Jeter and Ichiro. Both provide the uncanny ability to get on base and create runs for the Yankees. If Jeter and Ichiro have a big series, the Yankees will walk away easily in this match-up. If the Orioles, somehow contain their effectiveness, it could be a long series for New York.
Then their is the Yankees rotation. Throughout the year the Yankees have had issues with their rotation. Inconsistency from Phil Hughes, Ivan Nova and Freddy Garcia, coupled with the long absence of Andy Pettitte gave Bombers fans plenty to worry about.
Now, Pettitte is back, and will start game two in Baltimore, before manager Joe Girardi turns the ball over to the Yankees surprising best pitcher Hiroki Kuroda (16-11, 3.32 ERA) in game three. If there is a game four, the Yankees are scheduled to turn to Phil Hughes. However, if the Yankees are desperate for a win in this series, don't be shocked to see them go back to CC Sabathia on short rest to either end the series or force a game five.
It is worth noting that the Yankees left Nova off the roster for this round. Nova was terrible this year, pitching to a 5.02 ERA, and never once resembled the young flame-thrower from 2011.
With all of the attention on the Yankees' rotation, the microscope will be huge on Sabathia. This year, Sabahtia struggled against Baltimore, posting an 0-2 record with a 6.83 ERA. He will have to figure it out on Sunday night if he is going to get this Yankees team in front in this series.Another key to this Yankee postseason run: the bullpen. How Rafael Soriano pitches in the closers role in the most important games of the year will go a long way to determining the outcome of this years run. Remember there is no Mariano Rivera, lost for the year back in May. While Soriano pitched well in his stead, now is the time for Soriano to earn his pinstripes.
The Orioles offense is very potent, especially at Camden Yards, where they have hit 127 home runs.
Mark Reynolds, Adam Jones, J.J. Hardy and Matt Wieters all had success against the Yankees pitching staff, and if they get hot again, it won't be a lot of fun for the boys from the Bronx.
Expect a very tight series that will likely go five games. The Orioles have a lot of momentum coming into this series. They have nothing to lose, they are not the favorites, with a group of young kids who are playing in the postseason for the first time. Keep in mind the O's might even have the better manager in Buck Schowalter; however while Schowalter has been great in the regular season, he has never managed a team to the LCS.
I smell an upset in this series: Orioles in five.
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