Houston Astros vs New York Yankees Game 4 of the ALCS: pitchers, lineups, stats, etc.

With the series standing at 3-0 in favor of the Houston Astros, Sunday night’s game could well be the last in the ALCS. With that said, join us for a look at how the teams will start the evening’s affair.

The Astros continue to be excellent while the Yankees don’t

On Sunday night, the Houston Astros and New York Yankees will play Game 4 of the American League Championship Series at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx. As you probably know by now, the Astros lead the best-of-seven series by a 3-0 margin, which means if they win on Sunday night, they will not only take the AL pennant, but they’ll be making their second straight World Series appearance. The Yankees on the other hand, will have to either win four consecutive games, or hope that the Astros somehow collapse if they are to complete a feat that’s only been done once in MLB history - the Boston Red Sox overturned a 3-0 deficit back in the 2009 ALCS.

Interestingly, this is the third time in six postseasons that the Yankees and Astros have played one another in the ALCS. As if to punctuate the point that they’re better, the Astros are on the verge of making it 3-0 in the overarching series. With that said, let’s look ahead to how they will be starting the game on Sunday night.

The pitchers & lineups for Astros vs Yankees Game 4

For Game 4 of the ALCS, Astros pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. will be given the starting spot having been previously excused from his duties for Game 3. As funny as it might sound, McCullers needed some time to recover after he was struck in the elbow with a champagne bottle during Houston’s post ALDS victory celebrations. Understandably, McCullers has seen just eight starts during the post season, however, it has to be said that his limited time has been worth it. Against the Mariners - his last appearance - he threw six shutout innings.

On the other side of the divide, we’ve got the Yankees’ Nestor Cortes. Against the Mariners in the ALDS, Cortes who was not well rested held the Guardians to just three runs across the 10 innings that he threw. Impressive to say the least. As he prepares to face the Astros in what will be his third postseason appearance, he’s currently pitching 12-4, 2.44 ERA. In truth, the Yankee’s pitching thus far has not been able to contain the Astros, but if they’re to get anything out of Game 4, the left-handed pitcher may just be the man to give it to them.

Regarding the lineups for both teams, let’s take a look below:

Where the Astros are concerned, it’s highly likely, that the first seven batters in the order from Game 3 will not be changed. Trey Mancini gets his second consecutive start at designated hitter and it should be said that one of his two career hits is a homer off of Cortes who he will face. Here’s how it breaks down:

As for the Yankees, they continue to make changes as they did in the ALDS against the Guardians. Indeed, Aaron Boone is obviously looking for the combination of players who can produce runs, but it would appear that he’s still not found it. To that end it shouldn’t be surprising that the Yankees are hitting .161 (40-for-248) in the playoffs. Either way, this is how they look ahead of Game 4:

Astros in 4 or Yankees for 1?

If you’re a neutral or Yankees fan, you’ll probably want to see this one go the distance. On the other hand, the Astros have dominated the series right up to this point. Barring a catastrophic turn of events, there is no reason to believe that they won’t do so once again in Game 4 and be on their way to their second straight World Series.