ALDS Game Two: New York Yankees vs. Minnesota Twins: Masahiro Tanaka vs. Randy Dobnak

The Bronx was loud last night as the Yankees put up a ten spot in Game One of the ALDS, taking a 1-0 lead in the best of five series against the Twins. They’ll look to take a commanding 2-0 lead on home field today, and they have their best playoff arm on the hill.

Masahiro Tanaka doesn’t have the longevity of some of the Yankees’ greats, but he’s left his own mark on postseason history, especially in his excellent run in 2017. Tanaka struggled through much of this year, and his penchant for home runs could spell trouble against a powerful Twins lineup. Controlling the damage against bats like Miguel Sano and Nelson Cruz will be critical, but solo shots like James Paxton gave up last night probably aren’t going to doom this Yankees team.

Opposing Tanaka will be Randy Dobnak, who is younger than I am by almost a full calendar year. Dobnak’s recently married, a former Uber driver with a 4.99 rating, and has made nine MLB appearances, five starts, in 2019. His 1.59 ERA belies pretty mediocre strikeout numbers, but he’s done a good job keeping the ball in the yard, a crucial trait in 2019.

First pitch comes at 5:07pm EDT, on FS1.