Today on Pinstripe Alley - 10/1/21

Welcome to October baseball ... er, not that kind, though. Hopefully some playoff baseball will be in the cards for the Yankees, but to lock that up they’ll first have to finish strong against the Rays in Yankee Stadium. These two teams haven’t seen each other in a long time, and while the Yanks have been fighting tooth and nail to stay afloat in the Wild Card race the Rays have mostly cruised to the AL East crown. If all goes well, this could be a teaser for the ALDS in a week’s time.

Before the final series of the regular season kicks off, let’s briefly go through what’s lined up for today on the site. Peter will preview the Rays for hopefully not the last time this season, Josh opines that the Yankees have proven the “plug and play” strategy to be optimal for the bullpen, Esteban honors José Molina in this week’s Hispanic Heritage Month highlight, John “honors” Andrew Heaney’s demotion by looking back at the worst deadline additions of the Cashman era, and I’ll open up the mailbag to answer more of your questions.

Today’s Matchup:

New York Yankees vs. Tampa Bay Rays

Time: 7:05 p.m. EST

TV: YES Network, Bally Sports Sun, MLB Network (out-of-network, only)

Radio: WFAN 660/101.9 FM, WADO 1280

Venue: Yankee Stadium

Fun Questions:

1. Will the Yankees need to start Gerrit Cole this series, or will they get to save him for the Wild Card?

2. Will the Red Sox complete a late-season collapse or hold on for at least a tiebreaker?