Yankees, in 2-0 ALCS hole, head home where aces await, but task doesn’t change: ‘We got to score’
3-2 setback in Thursday night’s Game 2, but neither of those games were started by Gerrit Cole or Nestor Cortes.
Cole will start Game 3 at Yankee Stadium and Cortes Game 4 and the Yankees are a different team when they start (40-21, .656) as opposed to anyone else (59-42, .584).
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Solace, sure, as the squad grabbed one more sleep in Houston before flying back to New York on Friday morning, a needed day off before Saturday’s Game 3.
Yet is what ails this team incurable, even with their aces on the mound?
They have struck out 30 times in two ALCS games (the resourceful Astros have just eight whiffs) and are batting just .169 (37 for 219) in seven playoff games, including a too-difficult five-game survival against the Cleveland Guardians.
ALCS GAME 2: Astros ride Alex Bregman homer, Framber Valdez gem to beat Yankees
STRUGGLING: No swing in Yankees, striking out 30 times in two games
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“We’re going to go into this off day, take a step back, take a breath and reflect on what we need to really work on and adjust to get going again,” catcher Kyle Higashioka said after he struck out three times against Astros starter Framber Valdez in Thursday’s loss. “Good things happen when you put the ball in play. We saw that the series before against the Guardians.
“We just need to simplify our approach and get back to basics.”
Easier said than done when you’re facing Valdez and Game 1 starter Justin Verlander, who have combined to win 20 postseason games in their career. The opposition will be no less stout in New York; likely Game 3 starter Lance McCullers tossed six shutout innings in the Astros’ ALDS clincher at Seattle, while likely Game 4 starter Cristian Javier tossed seven no-hit innings at Yankee Stadium to key a combined no-hitter on June 25.