Here's how Astros can close out ALCS in New York

NEW YORK -- The victory in Game 2 that put the Astros in a 2-0 lead in the American League Championship Series guaranteed Minute Maid Park will see another postseason game this year. In their eyes, however, they hope that’s not until the World Series.

Houston heads to Yankee Stadium in a commanding position to advance to its second straight Fall Classic and fourth in the past six years. In all best-of-seven postseason series, teams taking a 2-0 lead have gone on to win the series 74 of 88 times (84%), and in the current 2-3-2 format, teams going ahead 2-0 in their home ballpark have won 43 of 53 times (81%).

“Probably one characteristic that connects all the dots is the way that they play together,” Yankees Game 3 starter Gerrit Cole said. “So whatever it is in any given game, they're going to try to gang tackle you, really -- and they play until the whistle blows.”

While Houston is undefeated in these playoffs, the club is about to enter one of the most hostile road environments and against a team that tied for MLB’s best home record (57-24).

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Here are three keys for the defending AL champs to seize another pennant in New York:

Keep on keeping Judge silent

Aaron Judge went just 1-for-8 in Houston, leaving one of the most hitter-friendly environments with nothing but a single -- not even a walk. How’d they pitch him so well?

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” Astros manager Dusty Baker responded, underscoring the threat that the AL MVP favorite represents despite a huge dip in production these playoffs, with a slash line of .179/.207/.393 (.600 OPS).

Judge scorched a 106.3 mph, 345-foot flyout to right fielder Kyle Tucker at the warning track in the eighth inning of Game 2 that had it cleared would’ve pushed the Yankees to a one-run win. It was just the second at-bat in which Judge has had runners on base this series.

The Astros were 5-2 against the Yanks during the regular season, their losses via walk-offs during a June series in the Bronx, on a single and a homer, both with runners on. Guess who delivered the dagger in each?

“He's the biggest dude in baseball and the most powerful guy in baseball,” Baker said. “You would rather not have to face him with any men on base, and we've escaped so far.”

Keep the pitching line moving

A bullpen that was statistically MLB’s best in the regular season has taken it up a notch in the playoffs, as Houston relievers have surrendered just two runs and 11 hits over 25 1/3 innings, good for a 0.71 ERA and opposing slash of .131/.215/.226 (.441 OPS). In this ALCS, they’ve given up just two hits, both from Rafael Montero in Game 1.

Lost in the late innings in Game 2 was Bryan Abreu overcoming a walk to red-hot Harrison Bader, shaking off the deep flyout to Judge and blowing 99 mph fastballs by Giancarlo Stanton for an inning-ending strikeout to halt a Yanks’ rally.

“I think we are all very excited to have him here,” Framber Valdez said through an interpreter. “He's matured a ton.”

Beyond Abreu and Ryan Pressly’s two saves, it certainly helped that Justin Verlander chewed up six innings in Game 1 and Valdez went seven in Game 2, setting up far less of an onus on the ‘pen ahead of Friday’s off-day. Because once Houston has a lead, it’s typically for good; the Astros have just 16 blown saves since Opening Day, tied for third fewest in MLB.

Keep up the contact

The Astros have been able to overcome their 4-for-32 showing with runners in scoring position by simply hitting the ball over the fence for 16 of their 20 total runs this postseason. Yet a deeper look reveals a team with a sound offensive approach, one that ranked second in MLB with a 78.7% contact rate, a number that’s dipped to 74.9% in the playoffs.

The Astros also were second with a 19.5% strikeout rate during the regular season and they slugged .424, nearly the same as the Yankees (.426), who struck out 22.5% of the time. But a huge difference in this ALCS has been New York’s 30 strikeouts to Houston’s eight.

“In the postseason you're facing unbelievable pitching. ... Their bullpen is full of guys that are really, really good,” Alex Bregman said. “So I think offensively we're just trying to put together a good at-bat and try and string together a few good ones in a row. That's really all we're trying to do is pass the baton to the next guy.”

There’s something to be said, too, about the impact of consistent contact on the road and how much it can quiet a crowd. And for a Houston team that hasn’t played in New York in the postseason since its sign-stealing scandal in 2019, a raucous environment is sure to be an element it'll need to overcome.