Dein erstes Forum » rcent during the NL Division Series

HOUSTON -- Where the Yankees grabbed the most headlines in their trading of closer Aroldis Chapman was in the acquisition of heralded shortstop prospect Gleyber Torres. But of greater significance to their immediate future was the return of right-hander Adam Warren.Before being shipped to the Cubs on Dec. 8, 2015, Warren played a critical role on the Yankees staff, going 7-7 with a 3.29 ERA in 43 games (17 starts) last season. By reacquiring Warren, the Yankees might have plugged the one glaring hole in their still-vaunted bullpen: long relief.Were going to move (Andrew) Miller back to the ninth and Dellin (Betances) will be the eighth and then how we choose to use Adam (becomes key), Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. Part of the thing that we have struggled with the past month or so is the bridge. It could be a job thats right for Adam in a sense. We could start him because I know hes built up. Those innings are extremely important.Itd be really helpful, guys that can go through a lineup one time and give us three innings in a sense because we have to be somewhat careful with Dellin and Andrew. Weve had a lot of close games lately and theyve been used a lot. But I think that (long relief) role is important.Warren is set to arrive in Houston on Tuesday. The Yankees (51-48) didnt need him in the series opener against the Astros, riding a strong start from Michael Pineda and the usual brilliance of Betances and Miller to a 2-1 victory. Veteran left-hander CC Sabathia (5-8, 4.04 ERA) will start the middle game of the three-game series on Tuesday night.Sabathia took the loss in his previous start, a 4-1 setback to the Orioles last Thursday on his 36th birthday. Sabathia remains winless in five career starts on his birthday and has allowed at least seven hits and four earned runs in each of his last six starts. He is winless in that stretch.Sabathia is 1-1 with a 4.80 ERA in two career starts against Houston.Right-hander Doug Fister (10-6, 3.42 ERA) will start for Houston against the Yankees. He is 2-2 with a 5.22 ERA in five career starts against New York but is coming off a 7-0 win over the Athletics where he tossed seven shutout innings allowing four hits and two walks.While the Yankees were dealing with the hoopla of the Chapman trade, the Astros (54-45) were managing the hype surround the debut of prized prospect Alex Bregman, who played third base and hit sixth.Although Bregman finished 0-for-4 with a pair of strikeouts while stranding six baserunners, his defense at the hot corner was a pleasant surprise. Drafted second overall in 2015 as a shortstop, Bregman moved to third base following his recent promotion to Triple-A Fresno. 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Thats all. -- David SchoenfieldInside the pitching matchupWhen Clayton Kershaw is on the mound: The games best pitcher returns to the mound just three days after throwing seven pitches to get the save in Game 5 of the division series. Two days before that, he started Game 4 and threw 110 pitches on short rest. Factor in Kershaws history in postseason games of hitting a wall in the seventh inning, and the Dodgers may only look for six innings here unless hes particularly efficient.Anyway, despite missing two-plus months with a herniated disk, Kershaw was so dominant this year, some believe he deserves Cy Young consideration. In 21 starts in the regular season, he allowed 31 runs. He walked just 11 batters, and one of those was intentional. He struck out 172 batters in 149 innings and the opposition hit just .184 against him.Kershaw continues to evolve as a pitcher. He now throws his slider more than ever (33 percent of the time), as his fastball rate has dropped from 62 percent in 2012 to 50.6 percent. What makes his slider so tough is that unlike a lot of sliders, his actually ends up in the zone over 50 percent of the time, making it a pitch he can throw in any count, not just as a two-strike sit-em-down offering. Batters hit .138 against it. In his two playoff starts against the Nationals, however, he did go more to his fastball, in part because he was having problems commanding the slider on the inside part of the plate.Kershaw wasnt quite as dominant away from Dodger Stadium, as his ERA rose all the way to 2.31 ERA on the road, where he did allow seven of his eight home runs. He completely shut down left-handed batters (.138, no home runs in 138 at-bats), so look for the Cubs to sit Jason Heyward and load up with all right-handed or switch-hitters (with the exception of lefty?Anthony Rizzo, who will probably remain in the lineup). The Nationals took a patient approach, hoping to run up Kershaws pitch count; I would expect the Cubs to do the same thing. -- SchoenfieldWhen Kyle Hendricks is on the mound: Speaking of command, no starter had a higher rate of first-pitch strikes this season than Hendricks, who tied with Johnny Cueto at 68.4 percent. That goes a long way toward explaining how he led the NL with a 2.13 ERA.Hendricks ranks near the bottom of the league in fastball velocity, but his ERA wasnt just a product of the Cubs defense: He led major league starters in limiting hard contact. He does that by expertly changing speeds with his four-seamer, sinker, curveball, cutter and changeup -- and hitting his spots. Everything is to the corners -- away to lefties, away to righties. No starter had a higher percentage of pitches on the outer third of the strike zone than Hendricks (62 percent).Hendricks throws his fastball about half the time, as he increased the usage of his changeup and cutter this season. Bothh were deadly weapons as batters hit .dddddddddddd135 against the changeup and .164 against the cutter, with good K rates of 29.5 and 25.3 percent. Indeed, dont be fooled by the lack of velocity: His strikeout rate is more than adequate, ranking 24th out of 74 qualified starters in the majors this season. As good as Hendricks was, Maddon may not ask him to go all that deep considering the Dodgers weaknesses against southpaws and the four lefties the Cubs are carrying in the bullpen. -- SchoenfieldPlayer in the spotlightAnthony Rizzo. He went 0-for-5 in Game 1 and is now 1-for-20 in the postseason. He had two stretches like this in the regular season (1-for-22 from April 8-14 and 1-for-25 from May 15-22) so he has gone through a slump like this before. -- SchoenfieldDid you know ...There are 137 players with at least 15 at-bats against Kershaw, and Dexter Fowlers .409 batting average (hes 18-for-44) ranks second among that group, trailing only Pirates catcher Chris Stewart (.529). -- ESPN Stats & InfoWhat will decide Sunday nights gameKershaws slider. During the regular season, Kershaw recorded 44 percent of his strikeouts with his slider. But in a small sample size, he has thrown that pitch a lot less in the postseason, and he hasnt had good results. While opponents OPS against his slider was .343 during the regular season, theyve generated a .955 OPS against it during the postseason, and he has gone from using it 33 percent of the time during the regular season to 26 percent during the NL Division Series. -- ESPN Stats & InfoChoosing sides: Who will win?The Cubs Kyle Hendricks cant buy a break in the postseason. He struggled last year, got pinged by a ground ball in his first outing this year, and now in Game 2 he faces the one pitcher in the majors who had a better ERA than he did. Maybe its time for his luck to turn? Clayton Kershaw is working at the end of an unusual string of usage, and Hendricks doesnt lose at home. I do worry about the wind -- with all of the Dodgers lefty power bats, it would be better for Hendricks if the breeze was off the lake. It should be another low-scoring one, and since its at Wrigley, Im going with the Cubs.?-- Brad Doolittle?Its a question of sharpness. Kyle Hendricks has hardly pitched after leaving his lone postseason start with a forearm injury, while Clayton Kershaw has been pressed into extra duty so far. The results for both will be more runs given up than normal. The Cubs will prevail as theyve proved to be late-inning warriors.?-- Jesse Rogers?Kershaw is finally getting his October narrative under control, and that will continue in Game 2 of the NLCS. The left-hander had an unusual week with 110 pitches on short rest and a seven-pitch save two days later, but he appears poised and ready for his first NLCS start in three years. The Dodgers will steal one on the Cubs turf.?-- Doug PadillaWhere the series standsWell, it seems like the Dodgers need to win this game, no? Losing a Kershaw game and going back to Dodger Stadium down two games to none and having to face Jake Arrieta doesnt sound like much fun. Then throw in the fact that Rich Hill or Julio Urias arent likely to go deep into a start and the Cubs have all those lefty relievers to match up against you and ... good luck, big guy.?-- Schoenfield ' ' '