MLB Playoffs 2024: Yankees announce ALDS Game 1 lineup against Royals

The Yankees are 11 wins away from a World Series crown and Game 1 of the American League Division Series begins tonight at 6:38 p.m. ET. The rosters have been announced and there are several preview articles available on the website for you to read until the action begins!

To get their first win, the Yankees are bringing in the big guns behind ace Gerrit Cole, although we can argue on at least some points. Here are the starting nine the team just revealed:

2B Gleyber Torres
RF Juan Soto
CF Aaron Richter
C Austin Wells
DH Giancarlo Stanton
3B Jazz Chisholm Jr.
SS Anthony Volpe
1B Oswaldo Cabrera
LF Alex Verdugo

Since the calendar flipped to September, leadoff man Gleyber Torres has been excited about this dish. Torres hit .333/.387/.472 down the stretch, consistently putting himself ahead of the all-world duo of Soto and Judge. Speaking of the latter, KC starter Michael Wacha has been the Home Run King kryptonite so far. Judge is 1-18 against Wacha with a single and 11 whiffs. This would be a great time for Judge to break out of that particular fear.

Catcher Austin Wells gets his first taste of playoff baseball cleanup. Wells struggled mightily in September after defending coverage off the ball in August and September. If he was just tired and exhausted, then maybe a week's vacation was just what the doctor ordered. Fifth overall, DH Giancarlo Stanton has been excellent since wearing the pinstripes in October. He enters this series with a career playoff OPS of .963, with 11 home runs in 27 games… that's on pace for 66 dingers, in case you were wondering. If October Giancarlo steps up and hits behind the Yankees' big guns, the offense could become very dangerous. The acquisition of Jazz Chisholm at the trade deadline rounds out the middle of the order.

Shortstop Anthony Volpe anchors the bottom third of the lineup. Volpe struggled for the record in his second season, but he brings 84 percent sprint speed and 98 percent baserunning to a lineup that, to be honest, isn't the best on the bases. Oswaldo Cabrera, filling in for the injured Anthony Rizzo, comes in eighth. There was a debate over who would start between him and the recently recalled Ben Rice, but the Yankees are sticking with the slugger who was slightly better for them in the regular season (Cabrera has an OPS+ of 87 to Rice's 72). .

So that leaves the position that could end up being the X-factor position in this series. Tonight, Alex Verdugo will start in left field while El Marciano will start the game on the bench. The Yankees obviously value perimeter defense, although they have indicated that Verdugo's starting role isn't set in stone. There's no real reason to expect this, but if the Verdugo from the first month or so of the season shows up (.804 OPS) instead of what we've seen since, Aaron Boone will look like a genius.

What do you think of the lineup? Let us know and then join us for the first pitch!