Around the Empire: Yankees news - 10/19/22

Sports Illustrated | Stephanie Apstein: The Yankees survived the ALDS, taking two must-win games to erase a 2-1 series deficit versus the Guardians. Their celebration was muted, however, since the work resumes today. The team quickly doused each other in beer and champagne without consuming much of it, before hustling out of the stadium to get on to Houston. Kyle Higashoika put it aptly, telling reporters “I’m already kind of thinking about the [next] series right now.” The Yankees are thrilled to be alive, but they understand that they have to immediately shift from celebration mode to competition mode.

ESPN | Marly Rivera: Aaron Hicks exited Game 5 with a left knee injury after colliding with Oswaldo Cabrera, and an MRI revealed a six-week timeframe for recovery, ending Hicks’ season. It’s a tough conclusion to a frustrating campaign for Hicks. “Extremely disappointing,” Hicks said after the game, going on to express his desire to contribute to this playoff run. The outfielder’s future with the team is cloudy, after this injury and his late-season benching.

NJ.com | Brendan Kuty: Monday night’s rainout was a fiasco, with fans sitting in the rain for over two hours with zero updates from the Yankees or MLB. Brian Cashman and Aaron Boone discussed the circumstances, with Cashman noting that most meteorologists thought that a window to play the game would open by 9 pm, only for the storm to slow down and ultimately lead to Game 5’s postponement. It does sound like the Yankees and Guardians got a tough break, with an unpredictable storm rendering the best predictions of the meteorologists moot, but the lack of communication from the league and teams to the fans in attendance was still an awful look.

ESPN | Joon Lee: Ahead of yesterday’s rescheduled Game 5, the Yankees realigned their rotation. Obviously, they started Nestor Cortes on short rest, and they also lined Jameson Taillon up for Game 1 of the ALCS. With Gerrit Cole having started on Sunday night and Luis Severino in line for Game 2, the Yankees needed someone to potentially open the series. They’ll be left with a slightly less than optimal Taillon vs. Justin Verlander matchup.