ALDS Game 1 Preview: Mano-Y-Mano

Pitching Matchup: CC Sabathia (19-8) vs. Justin Verlander (24-5)

Starting Lineups (** Projected based off what I expect the Tigers to do against a lefty.  I'm hopping on a plane well before the actual lineups will be announced. **):

NYY- Jeter (SS), C-Grand (CF), Cano (2B), A-Rod (3B), Teix (1B), Swish (RF), Jorge (DH), Martin (C), Gardner (LF)

DET- Jackson (CF), Ordonez (RF), Young (LF), Cabrera (1B), Martinez (DH), Avila (C), Peralta (SS), Raburn (2B), Inge (3B)

3 Things to Watch For:

1) CC's Command

The big fella wasn't himself over the last month + of the season when the 6-man rotation was instituted, specifically the command of his fastball and sharpness of his slider.  He's coming off a simulated outing during his last scheduled work day, which is not the same as pitching a real game, so it still remains to be seen if that command will be back now that he's closer to a regular schedule.  It won't be hard to tell if it's there early on, as CC will be in more 2- and 3-ball counts if it's not.  This is not a lineup you want to miss spots with, because there are plenty of guys who will make you pay, but if CC has his command back, his swagger won't be far behind and it could be a long night for the Tiger hitters.

2) NY's Approach Against Verlander

Justin Verlander is going to win the Cy Young this year, that's a given.  What's not is how he'll fare against the Yankees tonight.  In both of his outings against the Bombers this year he's been relatively successful (16 Ks in 12 IP), but has also been out of each game after 6 innings.  The Yankees have been successful at drawing walks (7 in 2 games) and fouling pitches off against Verlander to work up his pitch count and get him out early (114 on Opening Day, 127 on May 2nd).  Will they employ that same traditional Yankee patience tonight or look to jump on Verlander early?  Whatever they do, I expect Verlander to be on top of his game, and ready to match Carsten pitch for pitch.

3) Miguel Cabrera

We just discussed how he absolutely tears Yankee pitching apart, so pay attention to how CC and the Yankee staff approach him and how willing Cabrera is to take what the Yankees give him.  My guess is CC will pitch to him without runners on, and be more selective with guys on base, and I expect the general rule for everybody not named CC or Mo to be intentionally walk Cabrera in a RISP situation and 1st base open.  If that trend starts to play itself out tonight, it will be interesting to see if Cabrera maintains his patience through the series or starts swinging earlier in the count to try and make something happen.

Player to Watch: Alex Rodriguez

I'll just come right out and say it, I'm concerned about The Horse.  He hasn't been healthy in a long time, is even less healthy right now, and we've all seen how his swing and power fall apart when he's banged up.  Joe has already stated that A-Rod is good to go and will play 3B the whole series, but tonight should give us a pretty good idea of what kind of A-Rod the Yankees are going to have.  Are we going to get a healthy, strong Horse?  Or a banged up, weak one?

It's playoff baseball time again, folks, and that's when shit gets exciting.  Every at-bat matters a little more, every pitch matters a little more, and there's that extra bit of energy and electricity in the air.  The Stadium is going to be packed tonight, and it's going to be rocking.  We've got 2 evenly matched teams squaring off with the 2 best pitchers in the AL on the hill ready to do battle.  I salute them for the jobs they've already done this year in helping getting their teams to the playoffs, and for the rest of the Yankee lineup taking the field tonight, we all salute you in the tradition originally set forth by the fine folks at Fack Youk.

 
** (Just a reminder, I'm out of town again for the weekend starting this afternoon.  If I can somehow manage to snag a computer to bring with me, I'll cover as much of Games 1 and 2 as I can.  If not, I'll at least be able to watch and take notes and comment on Monday before Game 3.) **