Yankees vs. Tigers: 5 Huge Concerns from the Series' Opening Games

The American League Division Series matchup between the New York Yankees and the Detroit Tigers is tied 1-1, and the first two games raised a few concerns for both teams as they prepare to play Game 3 on Monday night.

Here are five things for both teams to be concerned about from the first two games.

Justin Verlander and CC Sabathia Pitching on Short Rest

The series got off to an unorthodox start when the first game was postponed for 23 hours because of rain on Friday, forcing ace pitchers Justin Verlander and CC Sabathia to face each other on Monday. This was not the scenario both teams had hoped for.

Verlander led all of baseball with 251 innings pitched this season, while Sabathia was tied for fourth-most. It has obviously been a long season for them, and it will be both interesting and concerning to see how well these two can perform after having to repeat the entire process of starting a game on such short rest.

Alex Rodriguez

Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez went 0-for-8 during the weekend, and things might not get much better against Verlander in Game 3.

Rodriguez has had only four hits in 18 at-bats against Verlander during his career. Rodriguez may be on the decline, but he still occupies a major part of the lineup as the cleanup hitter.  The Yankees will need him to climb out of his slump if they hope to win game three.

Detroit's Bullpen

The performance of the Tigers bullpen has become a big concern after they were torched in Game 1 and looked shaky in Game 2.

The Yankees have enough power in their lineup to erase sizable deficits. Therefore, Detroit’s bullpen will have to play better, especially in what many anticipate will be a tight contest between Sabathia and Verlander in Game 3.

Playing for Five Consecutive Days

There is usually a day off within the first three games of the MLB playoffs, but that is not the case after the first game of this series had to be finished on Saturday night.

There will not be a day off until Wednesday, and the series could be over by that point.

Although this continuous stretch of games is only of minimal concern, it is still something that has to be taken into consideration because it rarely happens in the playoffs.

Jose Valverde's Guarantee

Tigers closer Jose Valverde averted disaster after he gave up two runs during the ninth inning of Game 2, nearly blowing the team’s four-run lead. After the game he guaranteed a series win for the Tigers and promised that the team would eliminate the Yankees before the series could return to New York.

As a competitor, there is nothing wrong with Valverde’s mindset. The problem with this statement is that it puts unnecessary pressure on the rest of the team to live up to his words. And because he is a closer, he can only do so much to ensure that his words will prove true.