Throughout the first half of the 2022 regular season, it seemed like the Yankees and the Houston Astros were on a collision course. As the two best teams in the American League, they would have to meet in the A.L. Championship Series to decide the league pennant and the right to play in the World Series.
Here they finally are. The path was clear for the Astros, who earned the top A.L. seed in the postseason and swept Seattle in a division series. It was a more winding road for the Yankees, who earned a 5-1 victory on Tuesday in the winner-takes-all Game 5 of a division series against the Cleveland Guardians that felt like it may never end.