CATCHER
A nightmarish first half didn’t destroy Russell Martin’s season, but his second-half performance still doesn¹t match the production of Matt Wieters, who is playing in his first postseason.
Edge: Orioles
FIRST BASE
Mark Teixeira has not returned to form yet at the plate since coming back a second time from a strained left calf. That likely needs to change if the Yankees intend to make a postseason run. Mark Reynolds is a strikeout machine, but killed the Yanks this season, hitting seven of his 23 homers against them.
Edge: Even
SECOND BASE
The only thing that could stop Robinson Cano from hitting this week is the schedule. He went 24-for-39 over his last nine games and had six RBIs in the finale. Those are good numbers for a month from Ryan Flaherty and Robert Andino.
Edge: Yankees
SHORTSTOP
Derek Jeter led the league in hits. J.J. Hardy hit .238, although he did smack six homers against the Yankees.
Edge: Yankees
THIRD BASE
Alex Rodriguez is a star in decline and Manny Machado, who considers A-Rod his mentor, may be a star in the making.
Edge: Yankees
LEFT FIELD
Both Ichiro Suzuki and Nate McLouth were rejuvenated after coming to their new teams, Ichiro from Seattle and McLouth from Pittsburgh. Ichiro’s been even better.
Edge: Yankees
CENTER FIELD
Sure, the strikeouts are alarming, but a team-high 43 homers and 106 RBIs show how important Curtis Granderson is to the Yankees’ lineup. An argument could be made, though, that Adam Jones means even more to the Orioles. He didn’t finish strong, though, with just five hits and one RBI — along with 12 strikeouts — in his final 31 plate appearances of the regular season.
Edge: Orioles
RIGHT FIELD
After building a reputation of failing in the postseason, Nick Swisher showed signs that this could be a different October for him when he was among the Yankees’ most dependable hitters during their crucial stretch drive. We’ll find out soon enough if that carries over into the playoffs.
Chris Davis’ best position is DH, but he was forced into the outfield when Nick Markakis was lost for the year. Like Reynolds, Davis strikes out too much, but has plenty of power.
Edge: Even
DH
The Yankees could use a Raul Ibanez/Eduardo Nunez platoon and Ibanez has shown an ability to get hits in clutch situations. Jim Thome figures to get the bulk of the at-bats against righties for the Orioles, but he homered just once in his last 36 plate appearances of the regular season after returning from a neck injury on Sept. 22. Davis could be a DH against lefties.
Edge: Even
STARTERS
Baltimore has just one starter with double-digit wins this season, but Wei-Yin Chen, Joe Saunders, Chris Tillman and Miguel Gonzalez helped keep the O’s in the race. If CC Sabathia, Andy Pettitte and Hiroki Kuroda are on their game, though, it will be tough.
Edge: Yankees
RELIEVERS
The Yankees get their first taste of a postseason without Mariano Rivera. Rafael Soriano filled in admirably, but didn¹t finish strong, allowing five homers over his last 15 appearances. David Robertson and Boone Logan have warmed up in seemingly every game since August. Jim Johnson, in his first season as Baltimore¹s closer, had 51 saves.
Edge: Orioles
BENCH
The Yankees have plenty of veterans in reserve, with Eric Chavez, Ibanez and Brett Gardner providing left-handed production, but they come up short from the other side of the plate. Endy Chavez could be a useful defensive replacement for the Orioles.
Edge: Yankees
MANAGER
Buck Showalter is back in the playoffs after engineering perhaps the most stunning turnaround in baseball this season. While Joe Girardi did well to get to Yankees to the AL East title despite the loss of Rivera, as well as extended absences by Pettitte, Rodriguez and Teixeira, the Orioles came out of nowhere to push the Yankees to the brink.
Edge: Orioles
INTANGIBLES
Losing Markakis to a broken left thumb against the Yankees on Sept. 8 hasn¹t slowed the Orioles, who were able to stay with the Yankees until the final game of the regular season. Now they get another shot, but the Yankees already have proven they can outlast Baltimore and have all of their pitchers fully rested.
Edge: Even