Yankees vs. Astros: Dallas Keuchel The Unknown Ace

By Kenneth Teape | Oct 5, 2015

The New York Yankees didn’t finish the season on a high note, but they made the postseason nonetheless. Coming into a season with the amount of questions the Yankees did, it is a surprise to many that they will be in the postseason and hosting a Wild Card game. Their opponent will be the darlings of the 2015 MLB season, the Houston Astros. The Astros, who led the AL West for a large part of the season, sputtered down the stretch as well, barely hanging onto a postseason spot.

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But, as unlikely as it is for either of these teams to be here, the Yankees will be hosting the Astros tomorrow night in the American League Wild Card game. For the Yankees, Masahiro Tanaka will be taking the mound. The Yankees superstar import from Japan is well known in the baseball world as he took the league by storm last season and was shrouded in injury questions this season. Tanaka is pitching with a partially torn ligament in his throwing elbow, something that could become disastrous at any moment but this season has not been much of a problem.

Taking the mound against Tanaka will be an unheralded star in Dallas Keuchel. People who are Astros fans and baseball purists have heard of Keuchel, but many casual baseball fans probably do not know who he is; many people probably know him as the guy with that big beard. While that would be correct, there is much more to Keuchel to know. Well, get to know him now. Here is a rundown of the most underhanded ace in baseball, Dallas Keuchel.

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Name: Dallas Keuchel AKA “Kid Kuechy”
Date of Birth: January 1st, 1988
From Tulsa, Oklahoma
Height: 6-feet-3 inches
Weight: 200 Pounds
College: University of Arkansas

Career Stats and highlights: 41-35, 3.58 ERA, 523 strikeouts, 2015 AL All-Star and wins leader, 2014 Gold Glove Award Winner

Keuchel has come virtually come out of nowhere. He struggled mightily his first two major league seasons, compiling a 9-18 record. He was even removed from the starting rotation at times in 2013, as he had an ERA of 5.27 and 5.15 his first two seasons. But, then something clicked in 2014.

Keuchel came back as a totally different pitcher, bouncing back in a big way. He finished the season 12-9 with a 2.93 ERA, throwing five complete games with one shutout in his 29 starts. But, many people believed it was a fluke after seeing what he did the first two seasons of his career. Well, they were right, sort of.

Keuchel improved even more upon his 2014 with a Cy Young worth 2015. Keuchel should be the frontrunner for the award after going 20-8 in 33 starts, throwing three complete games and two shutouts. He compiled 232 innings and 216 strikeouts with a strong WHIP of 1.02. His numbers were even more impressive at home, where he finished undefeated at 15-0 with a 1.46 ERA and 139 strikeouts in 129 ⅓ innings pitched.

The Yankees will have a tall task ahead of them defeating Keuchel in the AL Wild Card Game, but one saving grace is that the game will be at Yankee Stadium. While Keuchel has been dominant this season, most of that damage has come at home. His road stats aren’t horrible, but they are nowhere near as strong away from Minute Maid Park, as he finished with a 5-8 record, 3.77 ERA in 102 ⅔ innings with 77 strikeouts.

That is a positive for the Yankees, but at the same time it didn’t matter where Keuchel was facing the Yankees at this season. In two starts against them this season, Keuchel has ran through the Yankees with 16 innings and no runs allowed. He gave up only nine hits and one walk to go with 21 strikeouts, which included a complete game shutout in June with 12 strikeouts.

That will make Yankees fans nervous, but in a one game playoff anything can happen. This will be Kuechel’s first appearance in the postseason, along with many of his teammates. That gives the veteran laden Yankees an edge that no amount of talent can make up for. It will make for an entertaining AL Wild Card game between a Yankees team looking to be at the end of the road, and an Astros team that is just at the start of theirs with Keuchel leading the way as the ace.

Next: Where Are The Yankees In Our MLB Power Rankings?

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