Maddie Meyer/Getty ImagesThe Boston Red Sox won 7-5 on Sunday
night
Denard
Span Jersey , knotting up their ALCS matchup with the Houston Astros at
one game apiece.The series now shifts to Minute Maid Park in Houston, as the
Astros will look to put things away at home, while the Red Sox will have to win
at least one game to force the series back to Fenway Park.Ahead is a look at
what's left of the ALCS schedule, some updated World Series odds and a quick
outlook of what lies ahead in the series.ALCS ScheduleGame 3 (at HOU):Tuesday,
Oct. 16 at 5:09 p.m. ET on TBSGame 4 (at HOU):Wednesday, Oct. 17 at 8:39 p.m. ET
on TBSGame 5 (at HOU):Thursday, Oct. 18 at 8:09 p.m. ET on TBS*Game 6 (at
BOS)
aturday, Oct. 20 at 5:09 p.m. ET on TBS*Game 7 (at BOS)
unday, Oct. 21 at
7:39 p.m. ET on TBS*If necessary Odds to Win 2018 World Series (via
OddsShark)Astros: +175Red Sox: +290Series OutlookDallas KeuchelGregory
Shamus/Getty ImagesThe Game 3 pitching matchup will pit a pair of upcoming free
agents against one another, as Astros lefty Dallas Keuchel (12-11, 3.74 ERA, 153
K, 204.2 IP) takes on Red Sox deadline-addition Nathan Eovaldi (6-7, 3.81 ERA,
101
K
http://www.marinersfanproshop.com/authentic-edgar-martinez-jersey ,
111.0 IP).Eovaldi threw a gem in his postseason debut in Game 3 of the ALDS,
allowing just five hits and one earned run in seven innings of work against the
Yankees.Keuchel lasted five innings in his ALDS outing, giving up four hits and
two earned runs. He has a 3.28 ERA and 1.14 WHIP in 46.2 innings.Charlie Morton
(15-3, 3.13 ERA, 201 K, 167.0 IP) and Rick Porcello (17-7, 4.28 ERA, 190 K,
191.1 IP) are the scheduled starters for Game 4, and both pitchers have enjoyed
their fair share of recent postseason success.Porcello picked up the win in his
ALDS start by allowing one run in 5.2 innings in the Game 4 clincher.Morton
didn't take a turn in the ALDS as the Astros swept the Cleveland Indians, but he
was instrumental in the team's World Series success last year. He posted a 1.74
ERA and 0.58 WHIP with 11 strikeouts in 10.1 innings in one start and one relief
appearance.Both teams have stacked offenses, so if one of those
back-of-the-rotation starters can turn in a dominant start, it could swing the
entire series.The ace matchup of Justin Verlander and Chris Sale will be on tap
again for Game 5, and the pitching decisions from there will be dictated by who
is on top in the series.We're just two games in, but this series already has the
makings of a seven-game classic. All stats courtesy of Baseball
Reference
Ben
Gamel Jersey , unless otherwise noted. MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — With an opening
for a designated hitter and a need for more power in the lineup, the Minnesota
Twins found quite a fit on the free agent market with a six-time All-Star in
Nelson Cruz.They’ll be counting on his impact beyond the middle of the batting
order. There’s a clubhouse filled with still-developing players who could use
his wisdom, too.The Twins signed Cruz to a one-year, $14.3 million contract that
comes with a $12 million club option for 2020, formalizing Wednesday their
addition of a player whose 203 home runs over the previous five seasons are the
most in the major leagues during that span.“I don’t think we view Nelson just as
a DH,” Twins general manager Thad Levine said. “He’s clearly going to be
occupying that spot in the lineup, but as we’ve intimated, and you’ve got to
hear in his voice, what he brings to the table is so much more than that. So we
did prioritize this type of offensive production. We did try to prioritize this
type of quality of character and leadership.”Cruz, who will turn 39 on July 1,
batted .256 with 37 homers, 97 RBIs and a .342 on-base percentage in 2018 for
Seattle. He hit a career-high 40 homers in 2014 in a one-year stop in Baltimore,
after an eight-season run with Texas. Over the last five years, Cruz has played
in an average of 153 games.Cruz served a 50-game suspension in 2013 for
violating the major league drug agreement in relation to the sport’s
investigation of the Biogenesis of America clinic. The Twins are still eager to
rely on his production and mentorship in a youthful clubhouse.“I know my body. I
know what I need to do to stay healthy first, you know? And what I do on a daily
basis to prepare myself to be successful on the
field
http://www.marinersfanproshop.com/authentic-edgar-martinez-jersey ,
that’s the biggest difference,” said Cruz, who added he would be “very proud” to
play in the outfield, where Eddie Rosario and Max Kepler are set at the corner
positions. He’s only played there nine times over the previous two seasons.The
Twins signed Logan Morrison last year for $6.5 million to serve as the primary
designated hitter, but coming off a career-high 38-homer season, he struggled
badly and eventually had hip surgery that shelved him in mid-August with a .186
batting average.Morrison, who wound up playing more than expected at first base
while Joe Mauer recovered from a concussion, took 35 turns as the DH. He took a
$1 million buyout and became a free agent. Mauer, who retired , had 33 starts.
Robbie Grossman, who was not offered a contract and became a free agent, was the
DH 36 times.With 360 career home runs, Cruz is fourth on the active list behind
Albert Pujols (633), Miguel Cabrera (465) and Edwin Encarnacion (380). He will
earn $14 million in 2019, and if the Twins were to decide to decline the $12
million option for next
year
Mitch
Haniger Jersey , they would owe him a $300,000 buyout.By signing second
baseman Jonathan Schoop and claiming first baseman C.J. Cron off waivers, the
Twins have added 88 homers to their lineup after finishing 23rd in the majors
with 166 last season.“I could not be more excited. Last year when I went to
Minnesota, I was thinking ahead, ‘This should be a good fit for me, a team that
has really good young guys with a lot of talent,'” Cruz said on a conference
call with reporters.MCruz’s most important relationship in Minnesota may be with
third baseman and fellow Dominican Republic native Miguel Sano, a slugger long
groomed to be a franchise cornerstone who regressed so much in 2018 he was sent
to the minor leagues for six weeks of holistic reconditioning, from his swing to
his attitude to his diet.“I naturally am always ready to help and willing to
help,” Cruz said, “and he expressed that. He told me, ‘I want to learn how to be
part of good teams.'”Schoop helped recruit Cruz, his teammate in Baltimore in
2014. Cruz is in the position that seven-time All-Star second baseman Michael
Young held with Texas as the mentor of that team while Cruz was an
up-and-comer.“He’s going to set a wonderful example in the way that he prepares
for games and just being the person he is,” new manager Rocco Baldelli said.
“That alone is going to be an asset for us going forward.”
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