Astros: MLB releases times for Division Series through Saturday

The Astros versus Red Sox elite ALDS Game 1 matchup of Chris Sale and Justin Verlander will be the early game on the schedules.

The Houston Astros wrapped up the 2017 regular season with a 4-3 win over the Boston Red Sox. While that win was meaningless, it was their 101st of the season, second only to 1998. That was the season where the Astros traded for Randy Johnson, but were one and done due to the pesky Kevin Brown. Justin Verlander has drawn comparisons to Johnson’s level of impact in 1998.

The Astros won three of four versus the Red Sox to close out the season. As I explained on tonight’s Talking Stros, I looked at it as a three-game series, and the Astros won two of them. Game 162 meant nothing to both teams, so they sat most of the everyday players. This way they could rest and prepare for the playoffs.

Primetime matchup?

They will face the beloved Red Sox, who have won their second straight AL East title. They have announced that they will pitch Chris Sale in Game 1 of the ALDS. The Astros have won their first division title since they won the NL Central in 2001. While A.J. Hinch hasn’t announced his Game 1 starter, it is widely believed to be Verlander on the mound.

Red Sox versus the third best team in baseball with a Verlander versus Sale matchup in Game 1 that sounds like primetime right? The game will be played at 3:08 PM CST on FS1 or MLB Network. I know someone has to play the early game, but this matchup alone would drive up ratings in primetime.

The winner of the Yankees versus Twins matchup will play the Indians in prime time. MLB could be banking on the Yankees taking out the Twins, but who would want to watch a Twins versus Indians series? Then again, the Indians are the popular team following their 22-game winning streak.

That’s okay, MLB will help us out on Friday and give us a good starting time. Instead, we get saddled with a 1:05 CST PM game time. This matchup could include Dallas Keuchel versus Drew Pomeranz which is another marquis matchup. As a teacher, I hope this doesn’t turn out to be an all day game postseason for the Astros.

Next: Projecting the Astros ALDS roster

What do you think about the game times for the first two games of the ALDS? No matter the starting time, the boys at Talking Stros will broadcast on SportsTalk 790 after each postseason game.