3 takeaways from the Yankees beating the Twins in the ALDS

MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA - OCTOBER 07: Gleyber Torres #25 of the New York Yankees celebrates with teammates in the locker room after sweeping the Minnesota Twins 3-0 in the American League Division Series to advance to the American League Championship Series at Target Field on October 07, 2019 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /

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MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA – OCTOBER 07: Luis Severino #40 of the New York Yankees reacts after striking out Jake Cave #60 of the Minnesota Twins with the bases loaded in the second inning of game three of the American League Division Series at Target Field on October 07, 2019 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /

1. The starting pitching will be alright

The starting rotation was the most glaring question mark for the Yankees entering the postseason, but the trio of James Paxton, Masahiro Tanaka and Luis Severino passed their ALDS test with flying colors. New York starters held the Twins to four earned runs in 13.2 innings and allowed only 12 hits. Against a lineup that hit over 300 home runs in the regular season, that is an impressive performance in a playoff series.

Going forward, the Yankees will likely continue to rely solely on the same three starters who pitched in the ALDS, with J.A. Happ possibly getting a chance to start if the team isn’t crazy about the idea of pitching Severino on short rest. The Yankees will have the weakest starting pitching of the remaining teams in the League Championship Series, in either league, but their starters are only asked for five decent innings. If they can get through five innings with three runs or less, that’s enough.

Masahiro Tanaka continues to come up strong in the postseason. The right-hander is 4-1 in his last five playoff outings with a 1.20 ERA in 30 innings while holding opponents to a .154/.200/.212 line with five walks, 29 strikeouts and only one home run allowed. Tanaka hasn’t totally lived up to the massive hype that followed him over from Japan, but hard to argue the Yankees haven’t gotten their money’s worth based solely on his playoff performances.

Luis Severino’s dominant Game 3 start also bodes well for the Yankees. The 25-year-old ace continues to come on strong after coming off the injured list in September. If the Yankees reach the World Series, he may be ready to go six innings. All in all, the ALDS could not have gone better in terms of starting pitching for a team whose starters had a middling 4.51 ERA in the regular season.

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