ALDS Game 1 Preview: Tigers vs. Yankees
Detroit Tigers @ New York Yankees
ALDS Game 1 9/30/2011 5:07 pm EST
Line: Yankees -130
Total: 7
The Detroit Tigers travel into New York to face the Yankees in Game 1 of the ALDS today. Both teams are sending out their aces with Detroit going with Justin Verlander and his 24-5 record and 2.40 ERA on the season and a lock for the AL Cy Young Award and probably the AL MVP. Even better, Verlander is 2-0 with a 2.05 ERA in his last 3 starts of the season and is absolutely shutting people down. The Yanks send out CC Sabathia is no slouch with his 19-8 record and 3.00 ERA on the season.
I got to think that Verlander has the pitching edge over Sabathia and the Yankees tonight especially since the Tigers hit better against left handed pitching, like CC. The Tigers average 4.9 runs per game but even more against lefties, they average 5.3 runs per game! If the Yankees want to protect home field advantage and win game 1 today in the Bronx, then CC is going to have to shut down the Tigers lineup that has been hitting lefty pitching well all year and also somehow solve the puzzle that is Justin Verlander for the first time all year.
If the Tigers want to win this game they are going to have to beat a Yankees team that is 52-29 at home on the season. The Tigers were pretty good on the road with a 46-36 record and they will have to continue that as well as hitting the left handed pitching in CC Sabathia like they did all season long.
The fact that Justin Verlander is plus money tonight in game 1 is really tempting to me but the Yanks are always a good playoff team and especially at home. This game is going to be a very exciting way to open up the 2011 playoffs and I will be watching it and probably make an official play here in the next couple hours.
