4 things to watch for in the ALDS

The two American League Division Series got an off-day after Game 1, giving the teams a chance to get their pitching staffs back in order without having to get on a plane.

That changes the calculus for these series and the way each manager can deploy his bullpen. For as many pitching changes as were made in each Game 1, you have to think all of these teams are grateful for the break.

Here’s the top storyline for each of the four ALDS teams heading into Game 2 on Monday.

Tigers at Guardians (CLE leads 1-0)
4:08 p.m. ET, TBS
SP: Tarik Skubal (SP) vs. Matthew Boyd (CLE)

Tigers: Can Skubal remain their failsafe?
Tigers manager A.J. Hinch has made his pitching strategy quite clear for this series, and any theoretical series moving forward: All games are either “pitching chaos” games, or Tarik Skubal games. The ALDS plan, essentially, is to win both of Skubal’s starts -- he could go again on full rest in Game 5 -- and then win one of the three other games. The first “pitching chaos” game of this series did … not go well. (It’s tough to come back from those five-run first innings.)

That keeps the onus on winning those Skubal starts, and here’s the first one. There is obviously no pitcher in baseball you’d want on the mound more than him: He just won the AL pitching Triple Crown, and he has been even better of late, giving up five runs in 37 2/3 innings over his past six starts. (That includes his scoreless postseason debut in Game 1 of the Wild Card Series.) There really isn’t a path for the Tigers to win this series if Skubal doesn’t dominate his starts. Fortunately, Skubal tends to dominate his starts.

• Tigers-Guardians ALDS Game 2 FAQ

Guardians: Boyd battles his mentee
“I think he’s the nicest guy in the world. He’s a great mentor and leader, and I’m still close with him to this day.”

That’s Skubal talking about ... the guy he’s facing in Game 2. Boyd spent eight seasons with the Tigers (2015-21 and again in ’23), starting 158 games for the club, and one of his primary jobs in recent years was to serve as mentor for Skubal, his fellow left-hander.

The two pitchers, obviously, became very close, which is why it’s kind of an incredible touch that Boyd will make his first career postseason start not just against his old team, but against Skubal. (Boyd did throw a third of an inning out of the bullpen in the 2022 ALDS for the Mariners.) The 33-year-old has only been with the Guardians since August, after signing in June as he neared the end of his rehab from Tommy John surgery. Now he is here just in time to make the biggest start of his career as Obi-Wan, facing Luke.

Royals at Yankees (NYY leads 1-0)
7:38 p.m. ET, TBS
SP: Cole Ragans (KC) vs. Carlos Rodón (NYY)

Royals: Will they be able to score that many runs again?
The Royals have struggled to score runs for weeks now. It was an issue in September, when they scored about three runs per game, and it continued to be an issue during the Wild Card Series against the Orioles, when they somehow won both games despite scoring three runs, total. So that’s why, if you would have told them before Game 1 against the Yankees that they’d score four runs against Gerrit Cole and five total, they’d have been thrilled.

Unfortunately for the Royals, they picked a terrible night for their pitching staff to go wild, walking eight Yankees, which turned out to be the margin in a 6-5 loss. Game 1 was actually only the second time since Sept. 17 that the Royals scored five runs or more … and they still lost. (With Bobby Witt Jr. going 0-for-5, no less.) Their path toward victory, suffice to say, can’t involve any more games in which they finally put up some crooked numbers and still lose.

But will Game 1 be a blip for the Kansas City offense or the start of a rebound? One positive: Salvador Perez has had Rodón’s number, going 12-for-26 (.462) with three homers and nine RBIs off the Yankees lefty, including 3-for-6 with a homer this season.

• Royals-Yankees ALDS Game 2 FAQ

Yankees: Can the hitters not named Judge and Soto keep it going?
The general issue with the Yankees is that they’ve got two transcendent superstars in Aaron Judge and Juan Soto … and also a bunch of other guys. The key for opponents is making those other guys beat you. Well, in Game 1, Soto had three hits but didn’t score or drive in any runs, while Judge went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts.

But the other guys beat the Royals. Leadoff man Gleyber Torres reached base safely three times and hit a two-run homer; rookie catcher Austin Wells -- batting cleanup behind Judge -- drove in two runs, including a game-tying single in the sixth; Alex Verdugo had two hits and scored twice. Overall, the non-Soto-Judge portion of the lineup went a respectable 6-for-24 (.250) with seven walks, a double, a homer and all six Yankees RBIs. That was enough for a Game 1 win. If the Yankees can just get one or two guys hot in addition to Judge and Soto for the next fortnight, they’re going to the World Series. They are well on their way.