Inside The Pinstripes

Yankees-Guardians Game 2 Rained Out; What it Means For Rest of ALDS

Game 3 won't take place until Friday afternoon in the Bronx.

Max Goodman

In this story:

NEW YORK — Game 2 of the American League Division Series between the Yankees and Guardians at Yankee Stadium has been postponed due to sustained inclement weather in the forecast.

Rather than a night game on Thursday, the second game of this series will now be played on Friday, October 14. First pitch is scheduled for 1:07 p.m ET.

Here's the official announcement from the Yankees:

The biggest takeaway from Thursday's rainout is that the final four games of this series—should New York and Cleveland need five games to settle the ALDS—will now take place in a span of four days.

That means no travel days and no days off from Game 2 in the Bronx to Games 3 and 4 in Cleveland and Game 5 back at Yankee Stadium (spanning from Friday to Monday).

While both teams have an extra day on Thursday to rest up and prepare for Game 2, this postponement throws a wrench in the way both squads planned to finish out this series.

For the Yankees, All-Star Nestor Cortes will still take the ball in Game 2 on Friday, just postponing his start-day routine for one more sleep. Same goes for Guardians ace Shane Bieber, who is scheduled to pitch for Cleveland.

Let's assume, for argument's sake, that this series goes to Game 5. Luis Severino and Gerrit Cole will start both contests in Cleveland—Cole will be pitching on his fifth day after a stellar performance in Game 1. For the winner-take-all game on Monday, however, Cortes won't be able to start. Originally, the southpaw was lined up to come back on short rest, if his start in Game 2 was on Thursday. Now, with only two days between, the most he'll be able to do is come out of the bullpen for an inning or two.

That means New York would need to turn to either Jameson Taillon or Domingo Germán with their season on the line. 

Same applies for Cleveland, ruling Bieber—a former Cy Young Award winner—for the last game of this series. That is, unless the Guardians are comfortable using him on two days rest. 

Finally, think of how this impacts both bullpens. Four games in a row during the regular season is normal and routine, but every inning is more intense in the playoffs. Managers Aaron Boone and Terry Francona will need to mix and match even more than usual if all four games are played, unable to use their best high-leverage relievers in every single game. 

That means closers Clay Holmes and Emmanuel Clase might not be available if they pitch two or three days in a row. Other relievers will be called upon in different roles and both bullpens will have their depth tested.

This is all avoidable for the Yankees, if they can win their next two games. After a win in Game 1 on Tuesday, that would allow this club to advance to the next round, sweeping Cleveland. 

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Max Goodman
MAX GOODMAN

Max Goodman covers the New York Yankees for Sports Illustrated and FanNation. Goodman has been on the Yankees beat for three seasons. He is also the publisher of Sports Illustrated and FanNation's Jets site, Jets Country. Before starting Inside The Pinstripes, Goodman attended Northwestern University and the Medill School of Journalism. He earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Broadcast Journalism and Master’s Degree in Sports Media, graduating in 2019. At school, Goodman was an anchor and reporter with NNN SportsNight and played on the club baseball team. While at Northwestern, Goodman interned with MLB.com as an associate reporter covering the Miami Marlins. He also interned with ESPN, working as an associate reporter on Mike Greenberg's Get Up. Goodman is from New York City. He grew up in Hell's Kitchen. Follow Goodman on Twitter @MaxTGoodman. You can connect with him via email by reaching out at maxgoodmansports@gmail.com.

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