ALDS Schedule 2011: Full Schedule for Tigers vs. Yankees and Rays vs. Rangers

Quite literally, the American League playoff picture did not come into focus until the very last pitch of the season.

Tampa Bay Rays third baseman Evan Longoria sent that pitch to deep left field for a walk-off home run in the bottom of the 12th inning against the New York Yankees, and it catapulted the Rays into the playoffs.

The excitement from Longoria's home run and from one of the most hectic final days in baseball history has not yet died down, but it's time to look forward to the two American League Division Series.

Here's a brief rundown of everything you need to know concerning the Detroit Tigers vs. New York Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays vs. Texas Rangers.

Detroit Tigers vs. New York Yankees

Schedule

Game	Matchup	Date	Time (ET)
Game 1	Tigers at Yankees	Friday, Sept. 30	8:30 p.m.
Game 2	Tigers at Yankees	Saturday, Oct. 1	8:30 p.m.
Game 3	Yankees at Tigers	Monday, Oct. 3	8:30 p.m.
Game 4*	Yankees at Tigers	Tuesday, Oct. 4	TBD
Game 5*	Tigers at Yankees	Thursday, Oct. 6	TBD

*if necessary

Watch: all games on TBS

Tigers Pitching Report

We know that AL Cy Young favorite Justin Verlander is going to start Game 1 in Yankee Stadium, and after him, it will be Doug Fister in Game 2 and likely Max Scherzer in Game 3.

Verlander is easily the best pitcher in baseball at the moment, as he finished the year with a 24-9 record and a 2.40 ERA. Fister was one of the best pitchers in baseball in the second half, going 8-3 with a 2.47 ERA. Scherzer was also solid in the second half, compiling a 4.09 ERA.

Yankees Pitching Report

CC Sabathia will start Game 1 against Verlander, and after him, it will be young right-hander Ivan Nova. Sabathia had another great year, going 19-8 with a 3.00 ERA in just over 237 innings. Nova emerged to go 16-4 with a 3.70 ERA, going a perfect 8-0 after the All-Star break. 

Late Wednesday night, ESPNNewYork.com reported that Freddy Garcia will start Game 3. A.J. Burnett will work out of the bullpen, which should come as no surprise.

Tigers Hitting Report

The Tigers have one of the best hitters in baseball in their lineup in first baseman Miguel Cabrera. He hit .344 this year with 30 home runs and 105 RBI, and he finished second in the league with a 1.033 OPS.

Beyond Cabrera, the Tigers have an assortment of dangerous hitters in Victor Martinez, Jhonny Peralta and Alex Avila, the latter two of whom were first-time All-Stars this year. All told, there are very few easy outs in Detroit's lineup.

Yankees Hitting Report

You won't be surprised to hear that the Yankees led all of baseball with 221 home runs this year. Indeed, it seems like every hitter in their lineup can mash. 

To give you an example, Curtis Granderson and Mark Teixeira hit 41and 39 homers, respectively, and Robinson Cano, Nick Swisher, Russell Martin, Alex Rodriguez, Jorge Posada and Andrew Jones all ended up in double digits in home runs. 

Long live the Bronx Bombers.

Who Must Step Up for the Tigers?

This series will live and die by Verlander's right arm. His postseason numbers aren't great, but he hasn't been since 2006. In the years since, he has developed into a truly dominant pitcher. He's already in line for the Cy Young, but he will get a ring as well if he pitches the Tigers through the playoffs.

Who Must Step Up for the Yankees?

Have to go with Alex Rodriguez here. It's been something of a lost season for him, but a good postseason surge would be a good way to help him salvage it. The Yankees' lineup is dangerous without A-Rod at his best, but it will be lethal if A-Rod can recapture the magic he displayed in 2009.

Prediction

I think this is the best matchup of any of the Division Series. Ultimately, I think the Tigers' pitching is going to be better than the Yankees' pitching, which will allow Detroit to advance to the American League Championship Series.

Tigers in 5

Tampa Bay Rays vs. Texas Rangers

Schedule

Game	Matchup	Date	Time (ET)
Game 1	Rays at Rangers	Friday, Sept. 30	5:07 p.m.
Game 2	Rays at Rangers	Saturday, Oct. 1	7:00 p.m.
Game 3	Rangers at Rays	Monday, Oct. 3	5:00 p.m.
Game 4*	Rangers at Rays	Tuesday, Oct. 4	TBD
Game 5*	Rays at Rangers	Thursday, Oct. 6	TBD

Watch: all games on TBS

Rays Pitching Report

The Rays finished the season with the second-best team ERA in the American League at 3.58, and they also led the AL with 15 complete games.

They have James Shields to thank for the bulk of those, as he pitched 11 of them this season. He ended up going 16-12 with a 2.82 ERA, and he is in line to start Game 1 in Texas. After him, you can expect to see David Price and Jeremy Hellickson, though Joe Maddon may have to start Jeff Niemann in Game 2.

Rangers Pitching Report

The Rangers were also one of the American League's best pitching teams, and Ron Washington's playoff rotation is all but set.

According to ESPNDallas.com, the Rangers will use C.J. Wilson in Game 1 and Derek Holland in Game 2. Both of them won 16 games this season.

Rays Hitting Report

The Rays are not a good hitting team, but they do seem to have an uncanny ability to come up with a big hit when they need one. You can look to their final game of the season against the Yankees for evidence, as Evan Longoria hit a big three-run home run than gave the Rays life, Dan Johnson hit a game-tying home run with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, and Longoria wrapped it up with a walk-off blast in the bottom of the 12th.

In my humble opinion, you have to throw statistics out the door when it comes to talking about the Rays.

Rangers Hitting Report

The Yankees led the majors in home runs, but the Rangers were a close second with 209. Just about everybody in their lineup can hit, and their accomplishments in the batter's box this season speak for themselves.

To give you an idea, Michael Young's .338 average was nearly good enough to win the batting title this year, Adrian Beltre tied for the team lead with 32 home runs despite playing in just 124 games, and Ian Kinsler was a 30-30 guy this year.

Yeah, they can hit.

Who Must Step Up for Rays

It has to be BJ Upton. The Rays never know what they're going to get out of him, but Rays fans will remember what Upton was able to do back in 2008. Namely, he hit .301 with seven homers and 18 RBIs in the Rays' run to the World Series.

If Upton finds that stroke again, look out.

Who Must Step Up for Rangers?

Gonna have to go with Josh Hamilton here. He had a decent season but was far from great. The Rangers need him to be more like the Josh Hamilton who showed up in the 2010 ALCS. That version of him hit .350 with four home runs and seven RBI in six games.

Prediction

Very, very tough call with this series. I don't think the Rays match up particularly well on the mound or at the plate, and I worry about them without their dome-field advantage.

But I'm going to take them anyway.

Rays in 4