Yankees' ALDS preview against the Red Sox: playoff schedule, TV channel, feeds, forecasts and things to know

The American League Division's best series between Boston Red Sox rival and New York Yankees will kick off on Friday, Oct. 5 with the opening game at Fenway Park.

The Red Sox have had a historic season with a record of 108-54 and have won the most games in the history of the franchise. They won the AL East and finished with the best baseball record. They will therefore have the advantage of home ground in the ALDS as well as throughout the playoffs, as they advance. The Yankees scored 100-62 and finished with the third best baseball record. They beat athletics at AL's Wild Card game on Tuesday night to reach ALDS..

Here are some things to know about the ALDS game between the Red Sox and the Yankees.

ALDS Calendar

Friday, October 5	19:32 ET	New York to Boston	TBS
Saturday, October 6	ET 20:15	New York to Boston	TBS
Monday October 8th	To come up	Boston to New York	TBS
Tuesday, October 9 *	To come up	Boston to New York	TBS
Thursday, October 11th *	To come up	New York to Boston	TBS

* if necessary

The Red Sox won the series of the season

But it was close. The Red Sox played 10-9 against the Yankees in the regular season and beat them 116-102 in 19 games. The Yankees had the chance to win the series of the season on the last day of the regular season. Instead, the BoSox destroyed them 10-2.

These two rivals have played unbalanced games this season. Of their 19 games, seven of them were decided by at least seven points. Only four were decided by no more than two points. Here is the approximate distribution:

• Fenway Park: The Red Sox have won seven of 10 games and beat the Yankees 76-48.
• Yankee Stadium: The Yankees have won six of nine games and have dominated the Red Sox 54-40.

For all intents and purposes, the AL East race ended when the Red Sox swept four parts of the Yankees at Fenway Park from August 2nd to 5th. They stood out 28-13 in all four games to increase their division lead to 9 1/2.

That said, the Yankees did not have Aaron Judge (wrist), Gary Sanchez (groin), J.A. Happ (disease of the hands, feet and mouth) or Andrew McCutchen (still with the giants) for this series. The alignment they take in the ALDS will be very different from the one they used for this four-game sweep in Fenway.

So, who wins each playoff match? And which teams are a must-back? Now head over to SportsLine for MLB playoff selections from the proven model that simulates every game 10,000 times, and find out.

These teams have a post-season history

Boy they never. Three times the Yankees and Red Sox have met in the playoffs and these series have resulted in some of the most memorable moments in the recent history of baseball. A quick summary:

• 1999 ALCS: The Yankees win 4-1.
• 2003 ALCS: The Yankees win 4-3.
• 2004 ALCS: The Red Sox win 4-3.

Overall, the 1999 ALCS was hardly remarkable. Bernie Williams managed a runaway run in the first game and that's about it. In 2003, however, current Yankees coach Aaron Boone scored his name in history by scoring his return home in the 11th inning of Game 7. The Yankees scored three runs in the eighth inning tie the game up after Grady Little, the Red Sox coach. left Pedro Martinez a little too long.

The Red Sox took their revenge for their loss to ALCS in 2003 and again in 2004. They became the first, and to this day, the only team in the history of baseball to return to the event. a 3-0 deficit to win a playoff series. The Yankees dominated the Red Sox 32-16 in the first three games of the series. They demolished them. Then Dave Roberts stole the second base in Game 4, David Ortiz clubbed a home run to keep the season alive, and the rest is history,

Hopefully, the ALDS 2018 will be just as exciting and iconic as the ALCS 2003 and the ALCS 2004. When the Yankees and the Red Sox meet, memorable events tend to produce.

Speed ​​of sale is always a question

Which Chris Dirty Red Sox do they win in the ALDS? Dirty will actually start match 1 on Friday, but will the Red Sox get the dominant contender from Cy Young or the left-winger compromised with reduced speed?

Two separate periods on the disabled list with shoulder problems have limited Sale to five starts and 17 innings in the last nine weeks of the regular season. When he played, his speed was well below his usual levels. In fact, at his last regular season start, Sale's average fastball speed (90.2 mph) was the lowest in his league game.

The missing velocity is always a red flag. Sale and Red Sox blame faulty mechanicsand although that may very well be the case, we still do not know if Sale's speed will come back for the playoffs. Yes, of course, it can be effective at 88-92 mph. Selling at 96-100 mph is a very different animal, however.

Here's what Red Sox manager Alex Cora told reporters, including Jason Mastrodonato of Boston Herald, about selling earlier this week:

The change needed was "something that, honestly, it's not a huge adjustment," he said. "Chris saw it first-hand and it should be easy to fix.It will pass it today.They have all the good things in regards to TrackMan and the video so we can compare with the information we have it in hand and I hope it's close to what we want or how we want it. "

…

"We think that if the mechanisms are near or perfect, speed will come with it," said Cora.

Between mechanics and adrenaline, I do not think it would surprise anyone if Sale was shooting Friday at a speed of 98 mph. Given the recent shoulder problems and the way he ended the regular season, no one really knows if Sale will have his usual speed in the first game of ALDS and we will not know it until he reaches the mound.

These are the two best baseball offenses

As is often the case, the Yankees and Red Sox were two of the best offensive baseball teams during the regular season. Boston led the MLB in points scored (876) and the Yankees finished second (851). Both clubs were among the league leaders in virtually all major offensive categories. Here is the team that had the edge face to face:

• Batting average: Red Sox (.268 vs. .249)
• Percentage based on: Red Sox (.339 vs .329)
• Percentage of slugging: Red Sox (.453 vs. .451)
• PAHO: Red Sox (.792 vs .781)
• OPS +: Red Sox (112 to 108)
• Radiation rate: Red Sox (19.9% ​​vs. 22.7%)
• Rate of march: Yankees (10.0% vs. 9.0%)

The Red Sox have the advantage in everything but the walking rate, but apart from the batting average, both teams are very close. The Yankees could have the advantage over the depth of the range. While McCutchen and Luke Voit replaced Brett Gardner and Greg Bird respectively, eight of the nine New York regulars had at least 115 OPS + in the regular season. Sanchez was the only exception (86 OPS +).

For Boston, six of their regulars had at least 115 OPS + and that's when you include Steve Pearce (140 OPS +) on first base against Mitch Moreland (102 OPS +). The bottom of the New York lineup with Miguel Andujar (126 OPS +) and Gleyber Torres (118 OPS +) is a little more formidable than Boston with Jackie Bradley Jr. (92 OPS +) and Christian Vazquez (46 OPS + ) or Sandy Leon (37 OPS +).

Sanchez vs. Boston basestealers will be a factor X

The Red Sox completed their attack with bases stolen during the regular season. They stole 125 bases, the third largest in baseball, and their 80% success rate led to the MLB. Mookie Betts (30 interceptions), Andrew Benintendi (21) and Bradley (17) all pose a threat. Six other Red Sox players have stolen at least six goals in 2018.

In Sanchez, the Yankees are among the best catchers in baseball. His blockage may be suspicious, no doubt, but his arm is a rocket. Sanchez has rejected 36% of the basestealers in his career, and Statcast's throwing stats make him one of the elite players in the game:

• Average projection speed: 86.8 mph (fourth best)
• Average length of pop: 1.94 second (third best)

Boston has scored 17 goals for 18 goals against the Yankees this season, but Sanchez has spent two months on the disabled list. They had 3 goals in 3 goals in 9 games with Sanchez behind the plate and 14 in 15 games out of 10 with substitute Austin Romine behind the plate. Statcast Romine class among the worst catchers of the game's throws, and the number of attempts is revealing. The Red Sox attempted 0.33 per game with Sanchez behind the plate, but 1.5 per game against Romine.

Launching personnel play a role in neutralizing stolen bases, absolutely. The pitchers must pay attention to the runner and be quick to the plate. Sanchez is clearly a much superior pitcher in Romine, however, and since the Red Sox enjoy using the stolen base, his figures on his arms are a determining factor in SLD.

The two loved ones fought against the other team

Neither the Red Sox, Craig Kimbrel, nor the Yankees, Aroldis Chapman were effective against the other team in the regular season. In fact, their lack of success against the other team goes back a few years. Numbers:

Chapman vs BOS in 2018	6	9:00	2.17	3-1
Kimbrel against NYY in 2018	5 2/3	4.76	1.23	2-1
Chapman vs. BOS from 2016 to 18	16 2/3	7.56	1.98	7-3
Kimbrel against NYY from 2016 to 18	18 1/3	4.42	1.04	10-2

Clearly, the Red Sox have been much more successful against Chapman than the Yankees against Kimbrel since 2016, when each closer player joined his team. (The first time Chapman joins the Yankees, it is.) Kimbrel however was not automatic against the Yankees.

Chapman and Kimbrel and still two of the best top baseball players and I would gladly take one or the other guy to the ninth inning. During this rivalry, however, the two guys had some problems to close their ball games. That could make interesting ninth innings during the SLD.

Price will have to pull himself together

This applies to both the Yankees and the playoffs. David Price will start the second game of ALDS on Saturday and, four times against the Yankees this season, he has allocated 20 points (18 earned) in 15 innings and two-thirds. And that includes a start in which he allowed two runs in six innings. The Yankees have scored nine circuits in these 15 2/3 innings. Eggs

During his long and successful career, Price won a silver 4.90 in 250 innings against the Yankees and a 3.01 medal in 1 672 1/3 against the others. He helped 19.6% of his career win races against New York in 13.0% of his career heats. In addition, Price's post-season problems are well documented. He has a 5.03 ERA in 73/1 in the playoffs, and his teams are 0-9 in nine starts. Ouch.

Price had an excellent second period overall with an average of 2.25 in 11 starts and 68 innings (1.74 in nine games against non-Yankees). He now throws the ball better than since his signing with Boston. three years ago. His problems with the Yankees and playoffs have now reached a point where they are no longer a problem. They lasted a moment. The Red Sox will need Price to overcome these obstacles in order to have their best chance to win the ALDS.

The Yankees will have to solve Eovaldi

Nathan Eovaldi has made four starts against this former team this season, limiting them to six points (five earned) in 23 1/3. He was even better than these numbers would lead you to believe. In one of those four starts, he allowed two runs in seven innings, then Rays coach Kevin Cash tried to escape another round. Eovaldi loaded the bases on two simple singles and an intentional walk, and the pad allowed the three legacy runners to score.

Upon his return from Tommy John's surgery this year – it should be noted that this is the second time that he's undergoing surgery in Tommy John's career – Eovaldi has adopted a cutter, which makes it difficult for him. Made it much more effective against right-handed hitters. He always had a fast velocity, but the fastball was more hardenable than the radar gun would suggest. The cutter gives him something to avoid the barrel.

The Yankees have a very right-handed lineup, which is especially true now with McCutchen and Voit replacing Gardner and Bird. The only regulars left-wingers in New York are Didi Gregorius and Aaron Hicks. Eovaldi agrees well with the formation of the Yankees, and this year's figures confirm it. They could also see him twice in the ALDS.

Cora told Eovaldi to be ready to compete in the first match and start the fourth.

– Alex Speier (@alexspeier) October 2, 2018

The New York hitters will have to make a fit and find a way to have success against Eovaldi for having a chance to switch to ALCS.

Staff forecasts

Mike's prediction

I chose the Yankees to go to the World Series before the season (where they would lose to the Cubs, which shows what I know) and I will ride this track as long as possible. My prediction of Wild AL card game was in the stadium. The Yankees won with Voit, which earned him his triple with two innings against Blake Treinen.

In any case, I will Yankees out of five in the ALDS. McCutchen and Voit deepen the lineup, Happ increases the rotation and, in a short series, the Yankees will be able to use their pennies a lot. Each team is stealing a win on a failed save by bringing the other team together and, if the most useful player of ALDS was, I would say that he would go to Andujar. He crushes and seems to be done for Fenway Park.

LDS games will be broadcast on the FS1, TBS and MLB networks. Games on TBS and FS1 can be streamed on fuboTV (Free Trial). To view the full program, click here.