The American League Division Series starts Monday with the Tampa Bay Rays taking on the New York Yankees and the Oakland Athletics playing the Houston Astros.
The Rays were able to get by fellow American League East division opponent Toronto Blue Jays to get to the next round. Randy Arozarena was 4-for-8 in the series with a double, a triple, and an RBI. Hunter Renfroe had four RBI.
The Yankees were on the road against the Cleveland Indians and managed to win anyway. Glebyer Torres batted .714 in the series while Giancarlo Stanton hit two home runs.
There is bad blood between the Yankees and Rays as Aroldis Chapman buzzed Rays batter Michael Brosseau during the season. The near-hit-by-pitch raised eyebrows in the Rays dugout and it will certainly be in the back of everyone’s head come Monday night.
New York Yankees' Aaron Judge (99) gets a fist bump after the Yankees defeated the Cleveland Indians 12-3 in Game 1 of an American League wild-card baseball series, Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2020, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/David Dermer)
The other side of the bracket has some history as well.
The Athletics defeated the Chicago White Sox in dramatic fashion. They needed three games to do it. Marcus Semien, Sean Murphy, and Khris Davis each had home runs in the series.
Houston, after being in the spotlight throughout the winter because of the cheating scandal, is back vying for a chance to win the pennant once again. The Astros defeated the Minnesota Twins in the Wild Card Series and gets a chance to enact revenge on Oakland.
These two teams were in a skirmish earlier in the season as well when Ramon Laureano and Astros bench coach Alex Cintron yelled at each other. The incident sparked league discipline and may not happen again in the series. But the tension will be in the air.
Here’s how the schedules line up for the five-game series.
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(1) RAYS VS. (5) YANKEES
Game 1: Oct. 5; 4:05 pm ET (TBS)
Game 2: Oct. 6; 4:37 pm ET (TBS)
Game 3: Oct. 7; 7:10 pm ET (TBS)
Game 4: Oct. 8; 7:10 pm ET (TBS)
Game 5: Oct. 9; 7:10 pm ET (TBS)
(2) ATHLETICS VS. (6) ASTROS
Game 1: Oct. 5; 4:07 pm ET (TBS)
Game 2: Oct. 6; 4:37 pm ET (TBS)
Game 3: Oct. 7; 3:35 pm ET (TBS)
Game 4: Oct. 8; 3:35 pm ET (TBS)
Game 5: Oct. 9; 3:35 pm ET (TBS)
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