The New York Yankees have now turned their sights toward the ALDS after losing the regular season finale against the Texas Rangers on Wednesday. With the Bombers already locking up the AL East and the top seed in the division, they, fortunately, get to skip right to the ALDS against either the Seattle Mariners or Cleveland Guardians.
In the loss to Texas, Yankees’ Domingo German got the final start of the regular season, pitching 4.1 innings, giving up seven hits and four earned runs. He gave up two homers, tossing 70 pitches. The Yankees got some of their bullpen arms a bit of work, with Albert Abreu giving up one hit over 0.2 innings and Miguel Castro walking two batters but not allowing a run.
One of the Bombers’ more reliable relief pitchers lately, Lou Trivino, acquired in the Frankie Montas deal with the Oakland Athletics, had an efficient 7th inning, working through three batters over 12 pitches, throwing seven strikes.
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Trivino has been phenomenal for the Yankees ever since the acquisition, hosting a 1.74 ERA and 9.58 strikeouts per nine with an 83.9% left on-base rate. He featured a 6.47 ERA with Oakland over 32 innings prior to the trade, showcasing a vast difference in efficiency.
As for the Yankee offense, they recorded five hits, courtesy of Oswaldo Cabrera, José Treviño, Marwin Gonzalez, and Kyle Higashioka. Trevino logged the Yankees’ only homer of the game, a solo shot in the 4th inning, finishing his season with 11.
Backup catcher Kyle Higashioka has had a solid past few days, hitting .545 with a 58.3% on-base rate over three games in October. He’s hit two homers with three RBIs over 11 at-bats, so if the Yankees need him at any point in the playoffs, he’s just hitting his stride.
Nonetheless, the big question is whether Gerrit Cole or Nestor Cortés will start Game 1 of the ALDS. Manager Aaron Boone was vague with his response on Wednesday but indicated that they should have a decision within the next 24 hours. With about a week off to rest and rehabilitate, the Yankee should be fresh going into the first playoff series, but sometimes rest isn’t always a good thing.