Editor’s note: The Yankees’ Game 2 matchup against the Guardians has officially been postponed until Friday, October 14th at 1:07 pm ET.
For the first time since 2019, postseason baseball is back in the Bronx. Gerrit Cole and the Yankees made it a triumphant return on Tuesday night in Game 1 of the ALDS against the Cleveland Guardians with a 4-1 victory.
But because of the new MLB postseason format and some weird scheduling, New York and Cleveland didn’t play on Wednesday. That’s unfortunate because it was a perfect day for baseball. There’s also rain in the forecast for Thursday, making a Game 2 postponement a real possibility.
Since it’s the postseason, the league will likely decide whether the game should go on as scheduled or not well before first pitch at 7:37 pm ET. Game 2 is supposed to be a matchup of top-tier pitchers, with Nestor Cortes taking on Shane Bieber.
It’d be a bummer to wait yet another day for the Yanks and Guardians to take the field again. A potential postponement could also throw a wrench into New York’s rotation plans for the remainder of this series, depending on how long it goes.
This is what the ALDS game schedule looks like right now:
- Game 2: Guardians at Yankees on Thursday
- Game 3: Yankees at Guardians on Saturday
- Game 4*: Yankees at Guardians on Sunday
- Game 5*: Guardians at Yankees on Monday
(*if necessary)
Pushing Game 2 back another day complicates things in a couple of ways. It eliminates the travel day between Games 2 and 3, which doesn’t seem like a huge deal because MLB teams do that consistently during the regular season. But this happening could limit Cortes in a potential Game 5.
As the schedule currently stands, Cortes would be in line to pitch a hypothetical Game 5 on short rest. If his start gets bumped to Friday, though, that possibility isn’t as feasible. Luis Severino and Cole are scheduled to take the hill in Games 3 and 4, respectively, so that’d also take them out of consideration for a potential win-or-go-home scenario.
Manager Aaron Boone did tell reporters that Cortes could still be used in a Game 5, but just not as a traditional starter. Another option for the Yankees should the ALDS get to this point would be to pluck Jameson Taillon from the bullpen to make the start. Of course, that could impact how Boone uses him over the weekend if the Guardians fight back and make this a series.
Cleveland would also be dealing with the same issue here. However, what it comes down to is something Boone said on a couple of occasions when discussing these possibilities. If the Yankees take care of business and win the series in three or four games, none of this matters. They took the upper hand after a solid Game 1 victory, and people must be feeling good having Nasty Nestor and Sevy on the mound following Cole.
Now they just have to do it so these conversations and hypothetical situations don’t become reality.
Matt Musico can be reached at matt.musico@xlmedia.com and you can follow him on Twitter: @mmusico8.
