What if Severino implodes again? In the strategy of wild cards Yankees

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Completely dominated, the Reds scored only two hits against the southpaw, who then won in the full match with a 5-0 victory at the Mets. Four years later, Boone entered the Bronx Bombers legend forever after a series of wins by the American Leagues against the Red Sox. That night in Cincinnati, however, there was no heroic – at the last minute or otherwise – from Boone, who went 0-for-3.

When Boone will lead this generation of Bronx Bombers to the wild card game of the American League on Wednesday night, he hopes his attack will soon provide some firepower. He also hopes his starting pitcher will make an exit to the Laiter – or that he will at least get enough of Luis Severino for a smooth transfer to his electrifying enclosure.

"I hope he'll play deeply in this game," Boone said.

Severino said, "I just want to win, whatever happens, if I can do four good runs and the pen comes in, that would be great."

But what if Severino, who will take the mound Wednesday night against the Oakland Athletics, does not start strong? What happens if he gets hammered early, a bit like he did in the last year's Twins against the Twins, when he was fired after just one third of the heat by his former coach Joe Girardi?

If that's the case, do not be surprised if the story repeats itself.

"Of course, with our office and what we will have at our disposal," said Boone, "we will also be very aggressive in changing the situation or trying to achieve the best confrontations, depending on the situation. match."

Very aggressive. It is the approach that the Yankees plan to adopt all night, that it is to shoot an early pitcher, to exchange a short mid-game term or to change receiver.

"You tend to be a lot more aggressive in what you do in this kind of match," said Boone, "especially when there is no tomorrow."

Lose it, and tomorrow the season is over. Win it and the Yankees will head to Boston for the Division Series and another playoff battle with the Red Sox.

With such high stakes, the starter from Boone is not the only one to get the hook quickly: the Yankees have three catchers on their alignment of wild-cards. With a reduced need for starting pitchers in a match scenario, New York can afford to sacrifice the place of a starting pitcher for an additional bench player. But three catchers?

It seems that if there were major defensive battles for Gary Sanchez, the reinforcements Austin Romine and Kyle Higashioka could see the action. Or one of them could take over behind the plate if Boone chooses to run for Sanchez in a key place.

"If I can get that fastball inside, and if that slider is sharp, I can go through that range."

Luis Severino on his way to Oakland

Externally, Boone says he does not hesitate on Sanchez – who made two assists last week – despite a record of 18 balls (in just 76 games) and a batting average of .186 this season. .

Two of Sanchez's past balls were played in Severino's two-run outing to Oakland last month. Both players attributed these problems of communication, as well as two other delirious throws of this game. They repeated Tuesday that these problems had been solved.

"I am convinced that they are in a good position, that they will be on the same page and that they give us a great chance of winning," Boone said.

Beyond staying in pace with his receiver, Severino's attention for this game relies on his repertoire of pitchers.

"If I can get that fastball inside, and if that slider is clear, I can get through that range," said Severino.

Anchored in the ranks of Khris Davis (who has scored 48 top homers this season, one of the MLB's best), Oakland's makeup poses a significant threat. But even though Davis & Co. beat Severino in the first three rounds, Boone believes in his options.

Of the 10 throwers that New York keeps on his wild card list, four are starters. Besides Severino, Lance Lynn, Masahiro Tanaka and J.A. Happ – supposed to be the starter of the ALDS 1 game of the Yankees if they succeed so far – will be available.

Ideally, the Yankees will not need one. The scenario of their dream would be that Severino makes at least four innings. Based on the deployment of relief throwers over the last few weeks, New York would likely be going to Chad Green in the fifth. David Robertson, one of the substitutes who, like Green, put an end to the bleeding in Wild's win over Minnesota, would win the sixth game.

Aroldis Chapman could then get the seventh, Dellin Betances the eighth and Zach Britton the ninth. The Yankees could also trade Chapman and Britton. In the two weeks since Chapman returned from the disabled list, both pitchers had the chance to close.

Of the league's big wins this season, the Yankees were fourth in ERA (3.38) and second in back (753). The Tampa Bay bullpen, some of whom opened several ball games as part of the club's innovative bullpenning tactics, were right in front of them with 754 strikeouts.

"We've seen over the past five or ten years how much the scorer has been instrumental in running a lot of teams at a world championship," Boone said. who will attend a concealer match in Oakland on Wednesday. . "We know that A's have a ton of really good arms out there that present a lot of challenges for us, and we'll just be prepared as best we can to handle that and succeed."

Lift Liam Hendriks will open for Oakland. The last time he did that against the Yankees, the A only used it for the first leg of a match that New York eventually won 5-1.

According to research by ESPN Stats & Information, the Yankees recorded a 19-16 record with a .771 OPS record this season. They faced six or more opposing pitchers. In the last week of the regular season alone, they had to face four days. The Yankees hit 10 home runs and won three of the four matches, in part following their usual game plan.

"Even if they bring a starter and you beat him a bit, you have to expect a lot of different pitchers in each heat," said Giancarlo Stanton.

Still, first-baseman Luke Voit, who had eight hits and two home runs in four games last week, takes a different approach to facing the revolving door of the opposing pitchers.

"You have to almost treat it as if it was the fifth or sixth inning right now," Voit said. "Just because we know we're going to have all these guys and we're probably going to have one batting against every guy." It's different because you usually have two or three batting against the starter. "

Veteran Brett Gardner is probably a Yankee looking to downplay on Wednesday. Since Andrew McCutchen has essentially taken office in the left field, Gardner has been relegated to the bench. McCutchen hits .253 with five homers and a .421 percentage on base since arriving via a time-waiver transaction a month ago.

Gardner ended the regular season by replacing central defender Aaron Hicks who had a tight hamstring temporarily. Against Oakland, his teammate and speedster Tyler Wade could be a late defensive or late addition.

"I know there are not a lot of guys in our lineup who are probably going to be pinched, but if something happens, we have to be prepared," Gardner said. "It's been a bit of a learning process, and I can credit Neil [Walker] with a lot of that. He helped me with a lot of routines during the match because he was a full-time player throughout his career, and then this year he obviously was pretty shaky and taking care of part-time things. . And he's really good at getting into the game and getting ready. "