Yankees Understand It Will Take Their Best to Defeat Guardians in ALDS
NEW YORK — The Yankees have more star power than their opponent for the American League Division Series. New York hit more home runs during the regular season, they won more games and their payroll is exponentially higher.
That doesn't mean the Yankees are taking this matchup with the Cleveland Guardians lightly. They understand it will take their best to defeat this young club, a team that's dripping in confidence.
"It's going to be a tough series," Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge said on Monday after New York's final pre-ALDS workout. "They're hungry, they've got a lot of fight."
Cleveland recently eliminated the Rays, suffocating Tampa Bay's lineup while sweeping the Wild Card Series at Progressive Field. In those two games—one lasting 15 innings before a walk-off home run from outfielder Oscar Gonzalez—Cleveland's pitching staff posted an 0.38 ERA, allowing just one earned run in 24 frames, while recording 29 strikeouts.
In the regular season, the Guardians' pitchers helped pave the way to a division title in the American League Central as well. Cleveland had the sixth-best ERA (3.46) and opponent's batting average (.230) in all of baseball. Their staff features a Cy Young Award winner in Shane Bieber, a rising star in Triston McKenzie and Emmanuel Clase, the best closer in the sport this season.
"They do a lot of things really well," Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. "They're athletic. They run the bases really well, they catch the ball, they can pitch, they got a really good closer and a really good back end of the bullpen."
The best way to counter an elite pitching staff, and a deep bullpen, is the home run ball. New York led the league with 254 long balls this year. Judge smacked 62 of those, setting a new single-season record in the American League. There are 10 different Yankees that hit double-digit homers this year.
If the Yankees can find their power stroke in October—when home runs win ballgames—they should be able to maintain an offensive edge against Cleveland's talented arms. Should they revert to their tendencies that led to their free fall in August, staying in the yard while failing to capitalize with runners in scoring position, it'll be even tougher for them to battle back when the ball is handed off to Clase, James Karinchak, Trevor Stephan and more in the 'pen.
Cleveland, meanwhile, hit just 127 home runs in 2022, fewer than every MLB team except the lowly Tigers. Other than José Ramírez—a perennial MVP candidate who crushed 29 home runs with 126 RB and a .869 OPS this year—the Guardians' lineup doesn't feature too much thump. As a team, Cleveland had the fewest barrels and lowest hard hit percentage in 2022—the Yankees were unsurprisingly among the league leaders in every power-oriented stat this season.
As Boone mentioned, this team beats you in other ways. Most notably, they steal bases (119, third-most in 2022) and they rarely strike out (every other team had more strikeouts than the Guardians this season).
"They've got a young team, a lot of young, fast players offensively that work a great at-bat," Judge added. "They cause havoc on the base paths, that's for sure. You have to be on your toes defensively because if you bobble the ball for one second, they will beat those plays out."
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That could pose an issue for a team like the Yankees, a club that's strapped with question marks in their bullpen as they head into the ALDS without a traditional closer. Then again, New York has played stellar defense all year and if anyone can get Cleveland to swing and miss, it's New York's staff. It could give a pitcher like Gerrit Cole an advantage as well. Cole, who will take the ball for those in pinstripes in Game 1 on Tuesday, has struggled mightily with the home run ball this year (33 HR allowed, most in the AL), while leading the league in strikeouts (257, most in a single season in Yankees franchise history).
Finally, let's not forget that Cleveland has an intangible boost heading into this series, momentum and confidence that stems from a division title most of the league didn't see coming. Even if the Guardians lost five of their six regular season games against the mighty Yankees, this is a different squad in October, a team that won't shy away from an opportunity to spoil New York's season.
"I think you're seeing a young team that's kind of continued to get better and better and better and played a lot of meaningful games down the stretch and went and took that division. They grabbed it," Boone explained. "They're a team playing with a lot of confidence right now, and they do a lot of things really well. We certainly understand that we have to play really well to beat them."
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