ALDS Game 5 Thread: Yankees vs Rays, 7:10 PM

Friday, October 9, 2020 • 7:10 p.m.

Petco Park • San Diego, CA – TBS

RHP Gerrit Cole (1-0, 4.50) vs RHP Tyler Glasnow (1-0, 7.20 ERA)

After the Dodgers, Braves and Astros all won their games yesterday, the Championship Series round of the playoffs was nearly set. On the National League side, both the Dodgers and Braves swept their respective series’ against the Marlins and Padres to advance to the NLCS.

Despite the large amount of baseball fans rooting against them, the Houston Astros eliminated the Oakland A’s in Game 4 of the ALDS, making the ALCS for the fourth-consecutive year. Now the only question is who will they be playing against?

After winning Game 1 against the Rays 9-3, the Yankees lost the following two games as Tampa erupted for 15 runs over Game 2 and Game 3. Last night, New York staved off elimination by holding the Rays to just one run scored.

Since there has been no days off in the divisional round, both teams are now turning to pitchers on short rest in Game 5. For the Yankees, Gerrit Cole will look to prove why he was worth that massive nine-year, $324 million contract he signed in the offseason.

Cole has won both of his starts in the postseason thus far, picking up a Game 1 victory against the Rays on Monday. Cole held the Rays to three runs on six hits across his six innings pitched, with eight strikeouts. Now he will try to pitch the Yankees into the next round on three-days rest. It will be the first time in his career that Cole starts on short-rest.

Instead of turning to their Game 1 starter Blake Snell, the Rays have decided to start Tyler Glasnow on just two days rest. Glasnow has won each of his postseason starts, although Giancarlo Stanton did hit two home runs against him in Game 2, driving in four runs.

Still, Glasnow dominated the rest of the Yankees lineup, striking out 10 in just five innings pitched. It will be all hands on deck in this elimination game, so we could see Snell come out of the bullpen and pitch as well.

In 2008, the Tampa Bay Rays made a miraculous run to the World Series, where they lost to the Philadelphia Phillies. Tampa has not reached the ALCS since that year, having been eliminated in the ALDS four times.

Meanwhile the Yankees last won the World Series in 2009, but have made it to the ALCS four times, including last season against the Houston Astros. If New York can win tonight, we would get a rematch of the 2019 ALCS, where the Astros beat the Yankees in six games.