My very favorite part of the playoffs is the strategy. Teams put endless time into preparing for each and every matchup and situation. Underdog teams come out on top in playoff series because they execute on their gameplan better than their opponent. In a small series, you can expose hitters and/or pitchers before they adjust.
Heading into Game 2 against the Guardians, Nestor Cortes will look to expose each and every hitter’s hole. He and his battery mate, Jose Trevino, are both high IQ players with a knack for combining their prepared info with in-game swing reading. Let’s go down batter by batter to see how the Yankees battery might attack the Guardians offense using their lineup against Shane McClanahan as a basis.