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Houston Astros: Three reasons why the ALCS will be an all-out war

By Kenneth Cline

BOSTON, MA - OCTOBER 09: The Houston Astros celebrate in the clubhouse after defeating the Boston Red Sox 5-4 in game four of the American League Division Series at Fenway Park on October 9, 2017 in Boston, Massachusetts. The Astros advance to the American League Championship Series. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
BOSTON, MA - OCTOBER 09: The Houston Astros celebrate in the clubhouse after defeating the Boston Red Sox 5-4 in game four of the American League Division Series at Fenway Park on October 9, 2017 in Boston, Massachusetts. The Astros advance to the American League Championship Series. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /
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NEW YORK, NY – OCTOBER 09: Tommy Kahnle
NEW YORK, NY – OCTOBER 09: Tommy Kahnle /

The New York Yankees

You heard the names of the great Yankee players in the past. Ruth, Gehrig, DiMaggio, Mantle, Jackson, and Jeter to name a few.

Fortunately for the first four mentioned, they never played in the ALCS. Back then, it was the winner of the National and American Leagues by the end of the regular season that went to the World Series. The Yankees won 27 titles and are the standard of excellence in baseball.

Of course, these new Yankees playing right now hope to the continue the tradition of excellence.

So how do we match up against them?

Well, we have had tremendous success against them during the regular season.

Just three of five wins in seven meetings between the two teams.

Now this will be an interesting battle because it will show off two teams vying for glory. One hoping to go back to the days and make the Yankees great again like every decade except the 80’s. The other looking to start a new tradition while making a city stronger than before.

Of course, the main event will be between two candidates.

NEW YORK, NY – OCTOBER 09: Aaron Judge
NEW YORK, NY – OCTOBER 09: Aaron Judge /
BOSTON, MA – OCTOBER 08: Jose Altuve
BOSTON, MA – OCTOBER 08: Jose Altuve /

We Know the Truth

Aaron Judge is going to be the Rookie of the Year.

Jose Altuve is going to be the MVP.

That’s what should happen. Unfortunately, there are those who think otherwise. It’s either because they haven’t seen Altuve play or because they’re caught up in the New York spotlight that anything outside is foreign territory.

We can only hope and pray the writers do the right thing and give the award to Altuve.

Yes, the Judge fans will say take Altuve out and the Houston Astros are still a good team. Yes, but we wouldn’t have won 101 games. We might’ve made the playoffs as a Wild Card team.

So far in the postseason, Altuve clearly has the lead. The dude hit three homers in one playoff game just like Ruth and Jackson. You expect Judge to do that. But Judge has struggled since the playoff started.

Other Matchups

Other than the main attraction, what other matchups can we see? We might see Luis Severino pitch against Verlander. There’s a chance Tanaka goes after Keuchel in a rematch of the 2015 Wild-Card game. Brett Gardner is looking to atone for his slip up after the 7-6 loss to the Houston Astros earlier. Aroldis Chapman and Ken Giles in the closer roles while A.J. Hinch stacks up against Joe Girardi.

Not quite the forte for a marquee match up. But it certainly has the makings of a great series. The Yankees will look to knock us off because they can beat us. Even with Sonny Gray added to the roster, it’s going to be a grueling series.

Even better is if the Yankees win, we have the home field advantage. Boy was it loud during the first two games against the Red Sox?

But with what we have and how good we match up, our regular season record against them should not be taken for granted. It will be a match up, but most fans think our chances are better against the Yankees than the other team.

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