This is a 10* on the YANKEES

For most of Sunday, it looked as if one or both of these AL East teams would be forced into playing a 163rd regular season game. With Toronto already having won, a loss by either the Yankees or Red Sox would have put them into a tie with the Blue Jays for the Wild Card. As it turns out, both won by scoring the go ahead runs in the ninth inning. So we get the two long standing rivals representing the American League in the Wild Card Game. We like the Yankees to advance. They have been hotter down the stretch and are 6-0 their last six games vs. Boston. New York swept them at home in mid-August, then at Fenway the weekend before last. Over the second half of the season, the Yankees went 46-26. The Red Sox, on the other hand, have basically been a .500 team since the All Star Break. Gerrit Cole was a pretty obvious choice to start this game, despite a shaky last few starts. Boston’s Nathan Eovaldi also had a shaky finish to the regular season. Looking at two starters’ numbers, Cole’s are superior overall. He has a lower ERA and WHIP on the road than Eovaldi does at home. The Yankees have won their last eight games following an off-day. The Red Sox are just 4-14 in their last 18 games as an underdog. Play on NEW YORK

AAA