3 Clear Advantages Astros Have on Yankees Heading into ALCS

The New York Yankees lost a painful Game 7 in the 2017 ALCS against the Houston Astros that ultimately ended up costing manager Joe Girardi his job. The two teams are set to renew their recent rivalry with Aaron Boone leading a revamped Yankees squad coming off of beating the stuffing out of the Minnesota Twins.

Even with all the firepower the Yankees have, AJ Hinch and the Astros are still the favorites. Heading into Game 1, here's a look at why Houston can come out on top:

3. Getting on Base

Divisional Series - Tampa Bay Rays v Houston Astros - Game Two / Bob Levey/Getty Images

The Astros as a team had an on-base percentage of .352, a slugging percentage of .495, and an OPS of .847. For some perspective, those numbers, respectively, are greater than Nolan Arenado's career OBP, Johnny Bench's career slugging, and both Reggie Jackson and Tony Gwynn's OPS. Shutting down a lineup that features Alex Bregman, Jose Altuve, George Springer and Yordan Alvarez, just to name a few, is going to be nearly impossible, so the Yankees need to just hold on for dear life and pray that the offense can get some good licks off of Astros pitching.

2. Home-Field Advantage

Oakland Athletics v Houston Astros / Bob Levey/Getty Images

The likes of the Cardinals and Nationals winning Game 5s on the road have diminished home-field advantage in these playoffs in the eyes of some, but the Yankee players who were on that 2017 squad understand completely what a house of horrors Minute Maid Park can be. The Yankees were swept early in the season at Minute Maid, and could be in for another extended cold spell if they fail to get good at-bats against Houston pitching.

1. Starting Pitching

Divisional Series - Houston Astros v Tampa Bay Rays - Game Four / Julio Aguilar/Getty Images

The biggest gulf between the Yankees and Astros is the state of their respective starting rotations. While they haven't always performed up to billing in this postseason, a rotation of Gerrit Cole, Justin Verlander and Zack Greinke is as good as it gets. James Paxton and Luis Severino have pitched extremely well, but Houston's lineup should provide some more resistance than Minnesota. If the Yankees want to win this series, they will need to force Houston to dig into their weak bullpen.