Tonight at 8:00 p.m. ET on ESPN the Yankees (86-75) will take on the Astros (85-76) in a one-game playoff to kick off the MLB Postseason. The Astros will send Dallas Keuchel (20-8, 2.48 ERA) to the mound in the Bronx against Masahiro Tanaka (12-7, 3.51 ERA). The game can be live streamed online free by clicking this link. Yankees fans can listen to the game on 101.9 WFAN FM, while Astros fans may do likewise on KBME 790. The national radio broadcast can be streamed here.
The Yankees have the comfort of playing at home, but they're in store for a difficult matchup. Keuchel is one of the premier left-handed starters in baseball, and he has been lights-out vs. the Yanks in 2015.
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Keuchel has thrown 16 1/3 shutout innings vs. the Bronx Bombers this year, striking out 21 batters and walking just one. He will be pitching tonight on three days' rest, however, which might limit his effectiveness, or at least his pitch count.
"I think his preparation is fine. Physically he's fine. It's just a little bit of a different routine," Astros manager A.J. Hinch said. "It probably garners more attention than it needs to. But at the end of the day, I think if he pitches well it will be a lot of guts and he came through on short rest. If he doesn't pitch well, then it's a change in routine and a lack of rest."
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The Astros don't have much playoff experience on their roster, but they are one of baseball's youngest and most talented clubs. Keuchel thinks their hard-nosed attitudes will compensate for the lack of playoff exposure.
"I play with a chip on my shoulder," Keuchel said. "I think a lot of the guys do in there as well. And we'll always carry that."
The Yankees have a ton of experience, and they have their own external motivations for winning. The organization was hit hard by Yogi Berra's death two weeks ago, and they just lost left-hander CC Sabathia, who departed from the team for rehab.
"For tomorrow, not just for the team, but maybe we can get the win for CC as well," Tanaka said Monday.
Prediction: Yankees def. Astros 5-3
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