Hurting Joe Girardi proud of New York Yankees

If one assumes that the Astros can win Keuchel’s Game 3 start at home, they’ll need to win at least one game in Kansas City – and McHugh, Fiers, McCullers, or Kazmir will need to come up huge for them.

Jacoby Ellsbury sat the bench for most of his first postseason game after signing a $153 million contract with the New York Yankees. Manager Joe Girardi used an understandably short leash, unveiling his vaunted relief crew for the final four innings – but it was perhaps the most electric pitcher of all, Dellin Betances, who allowed a third run to cross the plate in his first postseason inning.

The Major League Baseball Playoffs will begin this evening with an enticing matchup between the Houston Astros and the New York Yankees from Yankee Stadium.

“Nobody really gave us anything at the start of the year”, said Keuchel, the AL’s only 20-game victor.

“Even before this wild card started and we got into it, I’ve never been a big fan of the format because it’s so completely different than what you do during the course of the season”, Girardi said in an interview with WFAN’s Mike Francesa. A-Rod swung at Keuchel’s first pitch and flied out to centre to end the inning. Their offense lives and dies off of the home run, and they will be swinging for the fences in Kansas City.

Rasmus sent Tanaka’s first pitch of the second inning soaring into deep right field.

Houston’s ace faced the Bronx Bombers three times in 2015, and, in a total of 22 innings, gave up nary a run.

“The stadium was rocking, that’s for sure”, Keuchel said. Carter was then pinch ran for by speedster Jonathan Villar, who stole second base and came around to score on a bloop base hit by José Altuve.

It was a celebration a few years in the making. The official Astros Store just stocking new hooded sweatshirts, and they expect them to be a hot ticket item ahead of Thursday night’s game in Kansas City. Shortstop Carlos Correa commented on his team’s mindset, per Jose de Jesus Ortiz of the Houston Chronicle: “We came here to get the job done and we did”. “It’s going to be fun”. He was masterful in dissecting one of the best offensive lineups in baseball this season striking out seven and only allowing a total of only 4 baserunners. With Tuesday’s goose egg on the scoreboard, the Yankees have averaged just 2.9 runs per game in their past eight (resulting in seven losses). He popped out, then stayed in the game on defense.

This was an extremely disappointing end to the Yankees 2015 season, but they have nothing to be ashamed of. “This was a club that fought all year and there’s a lot of character in that room and this hurts”.

“It was something I mulled over for probably two days once I realized who we were going to face, ” he said.

By the time Gardner grounded out easily for the second out in the Yankees’ eighth, the raucous support that started the game had devolved into scattered boos.

If you thought Astros post season gear was in high demand before you haven’t seen anything yet.