The stage is set for Monday night in the Bronx.
Game 3 of the ALCS between the Texas Rangers and the New York Yankees is scheduled to begin tonight at 8 p.m. in New York on TBS. With the series tied one a piece, both teams go into this game tonight looking to take the lead in the series with their proven postseason pitchers taking the mound.
Cliff Lee goes for the Rangers, posting a 6-0 record with a 1.44 ERA in seven career postseason starts, including three complete games. Opposing Lee is New York's postseason stud Andy Pettitte, looking for his 20th career postseason victory. Along with his 19 wins, Pettitte posts a 3.87 ERA in 41 career postseason starts.
The Rangers are coming off of their first home playoff win in the team's 50 year history. For the Yankees it's business as usual as they are on a quest for their Major League leading 28th World Series Championship.
The hype over tonight's pitching matchup is not for nothing. Andy Pettitte boasts a hefty 5-0 record with a 2.88 ERA in his last nine postseason starts while Cliff Lee is 5-0 with a 1.67 ERA in his last five starts in Yankee Stadium. Two of those five wins were complete games, with one of them being the 6 hit, 10 strikeout gem in last year's Game 1 of the 2009 World Series while he was a Philadelphia Phillie in which he surrendered one run.
Game 3 could prove to be an important one, as the records indicate that out of the previous 19 ALCS Game 3's in which the series was tied 1-1, the winner of Game 3 has gone on to win the series 14 times. If you're manager Joe Girardi, you've got to like your chances with Andy Pettitte on the mound, who holds the Major League record for wins, starts and innings, and Captain Derek Jeter in the lineup. Jeter is one of the few players in the Majors to have steady success against Lee, posting a .432 batting average against Lee, including postseason; that is the highest out of any player in the MLB.
With Game 4 looming tomorrow night and a plan to start a rocky A.J. Burnett, it would be crucial for this seasoned Yankee team to take the lead in the series tonight.
