The New York Yankees will begin the chase for their 28th World Series championship with a matchup against the Kansas City Royals in the American League Divisional Series (ALDS), beginning this Saturday in the Bronx.
The Royals secured their date with the Yankees after sweeping the Baltimore Orioles in two games in the American League Wild Card Series to eliminate one of New York’s prominent AL East rivals.
The Yankees, who clinched the No. 1 seed in the American League, will take on Kansas City in a best-of-five tilt, which appears to favor the Bronx Bombers. During the regular season, the Yankees won five of seven matchups against the Royals, who are making their first appearance in the ALDS since they won the World Series in 2015.
This reunification of clubs will also promise the rekindling of one of the most intense American League rivalries of the late 1970s. This will be the first time since 1980 that the two teams have met in a playoff series after they squared off in the ALCS four times in a five-year span.
In Game 1, the pitching matchup between the two teams will see Gerrit Cole get the start for the Yankees, and Michael Wacha get the start for Kansas City. Game 2 will be between Carlos Rodon for the Bombers, and Cole Ragans, who had an outstanding start in the
first game of the Wild Card Series against the Orioles. All other starters are yet to be determined.
The lineups for each team are led by what will likely be the top two players in American League MVP voting this season. For the Yankees, Aaron Judge had an outstanding season, slugging a league-high 58 home runs and 144 RBI, to go with a .322 batting average. The Royals are led by superstar shortstop Bobby Witt Jr., who would likely have been the MVP pick if not for Judge. This season, Witt hit 32 home runs for 109 RBI and hit an American League-best .332.
Judge’s supporting cast is led by Juan Soto, who had the best season of his career in his age 25 season. In 157 games, Soto hit a career-high 41 homers, 109 RBI, and hit .288. The Yankees will also look for big impacts from Giancarlo Stanton, Gleyber Torres, and Austin
Wells.
For the Royals, longtime catcher Salvador Perez will hope to add another ring to his 2015 world championship. For KC this season, he hit 27 home runs to go along with 104 RBI.
Other big-impact players in the Royals lineup include Vinnie Pasquantino, MJ Melendez, and Hunter Renfroe.
