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NEW YORK — The final stretch of games against opponents with mostly losing records is producing some frustrating moments for the New York Yankees.There were two lackluster losses to the Chicago White Sox Rollie Fingers Jersey , a team playing better of late but still on course for its sixth straight losing season. Then there were the events of Thursday night against the Detroit Tigers when Dellin Betances allowed a two-run homer to Victor Martinez and a solo shot to Niko Goodrum in a span of three pitches to turn a two-run lead into an 8-7 loss.Article continues below ...After a disappointing series opener, the Yankees hope to rebound from a rare late-inning collapse Friday night when they continue a four-game set with Detroit at Yankee Stadium.The Yankees are nearing the end of a stretch in which they play 30 of 37 games against teams with losing records before heading to Oakland on Monday. They are 20-14 so far, with a 19-8 mark against teams under .500.Three of those losses have come since the Yankees returned from a four-game series in Baltimore. They sandwiched a 5-4 win on Tuesday around losses of 6-2 and 4-1 to Chicago and then allowed five homers Thursday and lost for the second time in 71 games when leading after eight innings.“We’ve got some guys moving around right now out of normal positions obviously with some guys down but it’s continue to work, continue to grow, continue to get better,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “We are doing that, and we are seeing a lot of positive signs from that, but every now and then we’re seeing some mistakes that to win big we’ve got to get better and curtail them.”The Yankees are 8 1/2 games behind Boston in the AL East after trimming the deficit to six games on Sunday. On Thursday, they wasted Giancarlo Stanton’s 300th homer and Luke Voit’s fourth homer with the Yankees that gave them a 7-5 lead into the ninth.Betances was closing because Aroldis Chapman is a week into his disabled-list stint because of a knee injury. Since Chapman went down Betances and Zach Britton both have had save opportunities.“He’s pitched great for us all season,” Stanton said of Betances. “If we get another save opportunity tomorrow, I am fully confident he can get the job done. Chalk this one up, it’s a bad game for him. He’ll be all right.”Friday is the last day to make waiver trades to get players eligible for the postseason and the Yankees will reportedly acquire Andrew McCutchen.The Tigers are going for consecutive wins for the first time since Aug. 12-13. Detroit also is seeking consecutive road wins for the first time since July 15 in Houston and July 23 in Kansas City.Winning the series opener ended a five-game losing streak where Detroit was outscored 34-10.“We had really two of our worst games in Kansas City the last couple of days,” Tigers manager Ron Gardenhire said. “So this is really a nice comeback for us. We needed this because we were kind of bummed. The whole club, we didn’t play good baseball in Kansas City. “Martinez, who is likely playing his final series in New York, recorded his 12th career multi-homer game Thursday. The designated hitter owns the team record for RBIs by a switch-hitter with 533, surpassing Billy Rogell’s record.Jeimer Candelario and Ronny Rodriguez also homered for the Tigers, who last hit five homers in a game on Sept. 5, 2017.After J.A. Happ endured his worst outing since joining the Yankees, Luis Severino (17-6 http://www.padresfanproshop.com/authentic-randy-jones-jersey , 3.27 ERA) takes the mound Friday for the Yankees and can become the major leagues’ first 18-game winner.He is trying to become the first Yankee to win at least 18 games since left-hander CC Sabathia was a 19-game winner in 2011. Severino also is trying to become the first Yankee right-hander to reach 18 wins since Phil Hughes in 2010.Severino has won his last two starts after going 2-4 with a 7.50 ERA in his previous seven outings from July 7-Aug. 13. He last pitched Sunday night in Baltimore when he allowed three runs (two earned) on four hits in 5 2/3 innings of a 5-3 win.“That’s first-half-of-the-year dominant fastball,” Boone said. “The slider was still a little inconsistent for him. But I thought stuff-wise and being able to pitch with his fastball, he was electric. So hopefully another step forward for him.”He allowed one earned run and struck out 10 in eight innings in the first game of a doubleheader June 4 in Detroit.Severino is 3-1 with a 2.19 ERA in four career starts against Detroit.Jordan Zimmermann (6-6, 4.38) starts for the Tigers and has alternated wins and losses in his last four starts following a four-game losing streak. Zimmermann last pitched Sunday when he allowed five runs on eight hits in six innings of a 7-2 loss.Zimmermann is 3-1 with a 3.09 ERA in five career starts against the Yankees. His only career start in New York occurred Aug. 2, 2017, when he allowed six hits in seven innings of a 2-0 win in a game that featured a 4 1/2-hour rain delay.The right-hander has issued one walk in his last four starts. In the two wins in that span, he has a 0.72 ERA. In the two defeats, he owns a 9.00 ERA. The American League has the two winningest teams in baseball squaring off against each other in its Championship Series.The Boston Red Sox won 108 games and the American League East title before defeating the New York Yankees in four games in the Division Series. The Houston Astros won 103 games in winning the AL West, and the defending World Series champions swept the Cleveland Indians in the first round of the playoffs.The Astros jumped out to an early lead after beating the Red Sox 7-2 in the series opener. Justin Verlander was on top of his game while striking out six hitters in six innings and allowing two hits and two runs, but Red Sox starter Chris Sale struggled with his control.The Astros held a 3-2 lead heading into the ninth inning, but they put the game away with four runs in the ninth thanks to home runs by Josh Reddick and Yuli Gurriel. American League Championship SeriesScheduleGame 1: Astros 7, Red Sox 2; Astros lead 1-0Game 2: Astros at Red Sox; Sunday, Oct. 14 at 7:09p.m. ET on TBSGame 3: Red Sox at Astros; Tuesday, Oct. 16 at 5:09p.m. ET on TBSGame 4: Red Sox at Astros; Wednesday, Oct. 17 at 8:39p.m. ET on TBS*Game 5: Red Sox at Astros; Thursday, Oct. 18 at 8:09p.m. ET on TBS*Game 6: Astros at Red Sox; Saturday, Oct. 20 at 5:09p.m. ET on TBS*Game 7: Astros at Red Sox; Sunday, Oct. 21 at 7:39p.m. ET on TBS*If necessary.The Red Sox took a big step up in the power department this season when they added J.D. Martinez in the offseason. Martinez blasted 43 home runs and knocked in 130 runs, and his preparation before each game was a big reason for his success.Martinez was joined by Mookie Betts, who should be among the favorites for the Most Valuable Player Award. Betts hit 32 home runs and stole 30 bases during the season and is also an outstanding defensive player.The Astros counter with Alex Bregman Johnny Manziel Jersey , George Springer and Jose Altuve, all of whom have been outstanding clutch hitters.The Astros have an advantage if it comes down to a battle of bullpens. The Red Sox had a few breakdowns in that area during the second half of the regular season, but that was not a problem in Game 4 of the ALDS, when the bullpen shut down the Yankees from the sixth through the eighth inning.However, when closer Craig Kimbrel got the ball in the ninth inning, the Yankees scored two runs and came within a few feet of extending the series to five games via a game-ending grand slam off Gary Sanchez's bat.Still, Kimbrel is the strongest part of Boston's bullpen.One other key factor in this series is Boston manager Alex Cora's familiarity with the Astros. Cora was Houston manager A.J. Hinch's trusted bench coach in 2017, and he understands all of the Astros' strengths and weaknesses.More importantly, he has turned the Red Sox into a looser, tougher and more aggressive team than they were a year ago.The Astros are minus-235 favorites, while the Red Sox are plus-195 underdogs, according to OddsShark. A Houston backer would have to risk $235 to win $100, while Red Sox bettors wager $100 to win $195.PredictionThe Astros have gained the early edge with their Game 1 victory at Fenway Park. However, the Red Sox will not give up, and they will find a way to win this series in seven games.National League Championship SeriesScheduleGame 1: Brewers 6, Dodgers 5; Brewers lead 1-0Game 2: Dodgers 4, Brewers 3; series tied 1-1Game 3: Brewers at Dodgers; Monday, Oct. 15 at 7:39p.m. ET on FS1Game 4: Brewers at Dodgers; Tuesday, Oct. 16 at 9:09p.m. ET on FS1*Game 5: Brewers at Dodgers; Wednesday, Oct. 17 at 5:05p.m. ET on FS1*Game 6: Dodgers at Brewers; Friday http://www.padresfanproshop.com/authentic-wil-myers-jersey , Oct. 19 at 8:39p.m. ET on FS1*Game 7: Dodgers at Brewers; Saturday, Oct. 20 at 9:09p.m. ET on FS1*If necessary.The Milwaukee Brewers got the jump in the NLCS, beating the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-5 in Game 1 Friday night.However, the Dodgers bounced back and evened the series with a 4-3 victory in Game 2 Saturday, as Justin Turner turned a one-run deficit into a one-run lead with a two-run homer in the top of the eighth inning. Closer Kenley Jansen dispatched the Brewers in the bottom of the ninth, and the series is squared 1-1 as the teams head to Los Angeles for Game 3.The Brewers are considered to have the better bullpen in the series, but the Dodgers are determined to show that their relievers are also an asset."That's something that to a man, I think our guys are taking it personal, as a challenge, because our guys are pretty good back there, too," manager Dave Roberts said of the Los Angeles bullpen, per Todd Zolecki of MLB.com. "And so there's not a whole lot said about them. But without those guys, we wouldn't be in this position."The Dodgers are minus-170 favorites to win the NLCS, while the Brewers are plus-150, per OddsShark.The Brewers will send Jhoulys Chacin to the mound in Game 3 against hard-throwing Walker Buehler of the Dodgers.Chacin had a 15-8 record during the regular season with a 3.50 ERA, and he has not allowed more than three earned runs in any of his last 12 starts. Buehler was 8-5 with a 2.62 ERA, and he helped steady the Dodgers rotation in the second half of the year.PredictionEven though the Dodgers won Game 2 to even the NLCS, the Brewers will not let their opportunity to win the National League pennant slip away. They will win the series in seven games.