It truly will be a battle of small market versus big market when the Oakland Athletics and New York Yankees square off in the Bronx. New York entered the season with a $166 million payroll while the Athletics, at $66 million, are the first team in 30 years to make the playoffs with baseball’s lowest Opening Day payroll. So the question now becomes, can the A’s win one for the little guys on the big stage?
The most important thing of the day: The “starters.” The Yankees are giving Luis Severino another wild-card shot after a disastrous outing against the Twins in a very similar situation a year ago. Severino struggled in the second half but looked more like the high-end ace of old over his final three starts of the season, when he gave up only four earned runs in 17⅔ innings and posted an encouraging 9-2 K:BB rate.
But it’s Oakland’s side of the pitching matchup that makes Wednesday’s contest especially interesting. Without an ace to turn to, the A’s made it clear they’ll try to ride their bullpen through to the ALDS by tabbing reliever Liam Hendriks to be the opener against New York. Hendriks hasn’t gone more than two innings in any of his 25 appearances (including eight “starts”) this season, so the A’s will need their dominant bullpen to be on top of its game to have any chance of advancing.
AL wild-card game: Oakland Athletics at New York Yankees
Liam Hendriks (0-1, 4.13 ERA) vs. Luis Severino (19-8, 3.39 ERA)
The stakes: The winner plays the Red Sox in the AL Division Series beginning Friday in Boston. The loser goes home.
If the A’s win: Oakland will put an end to a seven-game stretch of losses in winner-takes-all games by extending a surprising run with an upset in one of baseball’s most storied venues, while setting up a chance to take down the 108-win Red Sox in the ALDS.
If the Yankees win: Bring on Yankees-Red Sox. Enough said.
One key stat to know: The Yankees lived up to their Bronx Bombers nickname by hitting a record 267 home runs, but history shows that won’t necessarily translate to postseason success. Entering 2018, nine teams had hit at least 245 homers in a season. None won the World Series. The most home runs by any team to win the World Series is 244, by the 2009 Yankees.
The matchup that matters most: The Yankees vs. the A’s bullpen. Why would Bob Melvin make a do-or-die matchup a bullpen game? Oakland’s pen had the third-best ERA in the majors this season and the best since July 1 (3.35).
The prediction: The Yankees have home-field advantage over a surprise team in the wild-card game — we also saw this in 2015 and 2017 and the Yankees split. All the pressure is on them after winning 100 games and they’ll have to face a gauntlet of Oakland relievers. The Yankees set a record for home runs, but the A’s have big power as well (they hit more home runs on the road than New York). The A’s outhomer the Yankees and head to Boston. — David Schoenfield