Are the Astros good enough to beat the Yankees? No question, but the Yankees perhaps like beating the Astros even more than the Red Sox these days because New Yorkers think Houston stole potential World Series titles in 2017 and '19 with that cheating scandal -- the Astros beat the Yankees in the ALCS in both years. Of course, the Bombers aren't exactly non-cheaters themselves. Jameson Taillon (8-1, 2.70 ERA) has become one of the AL's top pitchers for NYY and is 4-0 with a 2.15 ERA and 33 strikeouts over his past six starts. It's Framber Valdez for Houston and while he's excellent, New York is 16-7 vs. southpaws.

Jameson Taillon is 5-0 with a 2.53 ERA in his last seven starts and he has been dominant for the Yankees this season. He doesn’t usually make it deep in the game, but that doesn’t matter with the Yankees second ranked bullpen in the league. The Astros bullpen is actually ranked first in the league and Framber Valdez has also been pitching very well lately. He has also been ridiculously good on the road at 4-1 with a 1.61 ERA. So if the Astros do win I think it will be because of a dominant performance by Valdez. However, the Yankees are very good against lefties and this is a rivalry game. The Yankees are 29-7 at home and 22-9 against teams above .500. I think they want to make a statement this series.