Gregor sizes up the American League Championship Series

Yankees vs. Rangers

How the Yankees can win

Just keep being the Yankees. Whether postseason opponents care to admit it or not, playing New York in October is intimidating, as are the 27 World Series championship banners hanging at Yankee Stadium. N.Y. made it look easy, again, while sweeping the Twins in the ALDS. Curtis Granderson, Mark Teixeira, Jorge Posada, Nick Swisher, Robinson Cano and Lance Berkman all delivered big hits and the three-man rotation of CC Sabathia, Andy Pettitte and Phil Hughes manhandled Minnesota, posting a collective 2.25 ERA. Erratic right-hander A.J. Burnett will start Game 4 for in the ALCS, so a sweep is unlikely. New York has history on its side in head-to-head playoff meetings vs. Texas, winning three straight series over the Rangers in the 1990s while going 9-1.

How the Rangers can win

Outside of pitching Cliff Lee in every game, it's going to be a difficult task. Texas is riding high after edging the Rays 3-2 in the ALDS, with all three wins coming on the road. Lee picked up two of the victories, but the talented lefty was on the mound in Game 5 and threw 120 pitches. He'll face the Yankees in Game 3, and possibly Game 7. For the Rangers to have any chance, they'll need much better offensive production from Josh Hamilton and Michael Young. The duo combined to go 5-for-38 in the ALDS, and that won't be good enough to overcome N.Y. Nelson Cruz and Ian Kinsler, however, had 6 home runs against Tampa Bay.

Intangibles

If the series comes down to the closers, the edge goes to the Yankees. At the age of 40, Mariano Rivera is still going strong, and he finished all three games against the Twins in the ALDS. For his postseason career, Rivera is 8-1 with a 0.72 ERA and 41 saves in 91 games. The Rangers' closer is 22-year-old Neftali Feliz, who has appeared in a total of 90 major-league games ... Texas has the home-field advantage over the wild-card Yankees, but is that a good thing? The Rangers lost both home games against the Rays in the opening round and have lost all 6 postseason games played at Rangers Ballpark ... Lee was outstanding vs. Tampa Bay in the ALDS, and he also beat the Yankees twice in the 2009 World Series while pitching for the Phillies.

The quote: “You do worry about not playing for six days. Hopefully, they won't be rusty and they will come out and the rest actually did them good. Joe Girardi, Yankees.

Scot Gregor's pick: Yankees in 5