When Mariano got Elvis Andrus to pop up to Lance Berkman, it signaled that the Yankees were not done just yet. Game six would be set for Friday evening in Arlington,Texas, Phil Hughes would be on the mound for the Yanks while Colby Lewis would be going for the home team. But looking at the forecast from
Weather.com , they are expecting scattered thunder storms on both Friday and Saturday.
So what does this mean for the ALCS ? Well the Saturday forecast looks much worse then Friday, but if the game is rained out of Friday and game six is going to take place Saturday, who will be starting? Of course the Yankees and Rangers could go with Hughes and Lewis who were scheduled to go, but they would both have the option of then bringing back Cliff Lee and Andy Pettitte, both on normal rest. If they were to elected to go with Lee and Pettitte, then Sabathia would be available for the Yankees on three days rest. The Rangers could go with CJ Wilson on three days rest, or go with Lewis, who by then would not have pitched for eight days.
The rain outs would benefit the Yankees, only if the games were to be rained out before hand oppose to the game being called in the middle of a game. Even though Hughes has pitched well against the Rangers in his career, the no brainier is to go with Pettitte and Sabathia. For the Rangers, its a tougher choice, do they want to send Lee out in game six and hope that they end the ALCS that night? Because if that is the case, its a risky choice, if the Yankees were to win against Lee then suddenly the Rangers are up against the wall. The series would be tied at three a piece but the Rangers would be relying on Wilson on three days rest, coming off a shaky start or Colby Lewis who would be pitching the biggest game of his career.
Of course this is all hypothetical, the worst case for either team would be if the game was to start and then a long rain delay was to effect the game, especially if it is in the mid point of the game (3-5 innings).
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