Red Sox-Yankees preview: Five storylines to follow in Wild Card rematch

Here we go again.

For the second consecutive season — and for the seventh time in MLB history — the Red Sox and Yankees are set to face off in the postseason. The historic rivals will once again meet at Yankee Stadium in the best-of-three American League Wild Card Series, which will begin Tuesday night in the Bronx.

Last year the Yankees came out on top in a tightly-contested series, riding a dominant pitching performance by Cam Schlittler to victory in the do-or-die Game 3. Will history repeat itself? Or can the Red Sox flip the script and punch their ticket to Tropicana Field and a divisional series date with the Tampa Bay Rays?

Here are the major storylines heading into the big rematch.

Will Judge play?

The big question for both teams is whether or not their best hitter will play, and if they do, will they be healthy enough to perform to their usual standards?

Aaron Judge’s availability has loomed over the Yankees like a dark cloud since he suffered a calf strain on Sept. 16, barely a week after he returned from a rib injury that sidelined him throughout the summer. Since then the Yankees have sent mixed signals over the three-time MVP’s chances of playing in the Wild Card Series, with manager Aaron Boone saying they’re preparing to play without him while Judge has said he’s doing everything he can to play.

If Judge isn’t able to go, or if he’s significantly compromised, it would be a massive blow to the Yankees.

The Red Sox had similar concerns with Willson Contreras, though he took a huge step forward on Sunday.

A day after Judge’s latest injury, Contreras was hit by a pitch in his right hand. He was fortunate to avoid a fracture, but he’s still dealt with inflammation and bruising ever since, and on Thursday the All-Star first baseman admitted he still couldn’t swing a bat pain-free and was concerned he might not be ready in time for the playoffs.

Fortunately, Contreras made substantial progress in the days that followed and was back in the lineup for Sunday’s season finale.

The first baseman has been the Red Sox’s best all-around hitter and the club’s most formidable power threat. He leads the team with 27 home runs, and if he weren’t able to play it would have made life much more difficult for the Red Sox, particularly against the Yankees’ dominant pitching staff.

Can Sox beat Schlittler?

Last fall Schlittler announced himself on the national stage in emphatic fashion, striking out 12 batters over eight dominant innings in Game 3 to send the Yankees on to the divisional round and end Boston’s season.

Turns out the Walpole native was just getting started.

Now the heavy favorite to win the AL Cy Young Award, Schlittler will take the ball at Yankee Stadium again in Game 1 on Tuesday with another chance to torture his childhood team. If the Red Sox hope to author a different ending to their season, they’ll have to figure out a way to overcome the 25-year-old, who has held the Red Sox to just two earned runs over 32 1/3 innings (0.56 ERA) in five career starts, postseason included.

Can Sox lefties shine?

Outside of Judge, most of the Yankees’ best hitters bat left-handed, and the group of Ben Rice, Cody Bellinger, Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Luis Garcia Jr. have all frequently taken advantage of Yankee Stadium’s short porch in right field.

But the Yankees also generally try to limit their exposure to left-handed pitchers, because all have been more productive against righties to varying degrees. Rice, for example, only hit 11 of his 41 home runs against lefties, and just three of Garcia’s 30 homers this year came against southpaws.

The Red Sox might be uniquely well positioned to exploit that weakness.

This year’s Red Sox pitching staff is among the most lefty-heavy in MLB history, and according to a recent MLB.com study the 59% of innings thrown by lefties is the highest percentage by any club in nearly 40 years.

Payton Tolle and Ranger Suarez, two of Boston’s three starters lined up for the Wild Card Series, are both left-handers, and the club has a bevy of lefty relievers who could step into high leverage situations. Closer Aroldis Chapman is obviously dominant against everybody, and if Erik Miller can find the strike zone there could be a moment he faces a key pocket in a big spot late.

Then of course there is one other lefty who might have a big moment to shine.

What role will Crochet play?

Garrett Crochet has been sidelined since April with left shoulder inflammation, but over the past month he’s been working his way back towards potentially pitching in the postseason out of the bullpen.

Crochet faced live hitters for the first time this past Tuesday, averaging around 94-96 mph, and he took the mound again one more time on Saturday. He said following Tuesday’s session that he’d reached a point where he could get outs in a game setting, but ultimately it would be up to management to decide if he fit into the club’s Wild Card plans.

Even in a best case scenario Crochet won’t play a starring role like last fall when he started Game 1 and struck out 11 Yankees over 7 2/3 dominant innings. But at his best Crochet is one of the game’s top arms, and having a card like that to play late in a tight game could potentially swing a close series.

However, with where Crochet is at in his recovery, that’s a card the Red Sox could probably only play once over three games. So if Crochet isn’t added to the roster, that might be one reason why.

How will Anthony fare in first postseason?

When the Red Sox faced the Yankees in the postseason last October, Roman Anthony was stuck in Fort Myers with a handful of other rehabbing big leaguers, unable to do anything but watch.

This year, Anthony will take center stage under the bright playoff lights for the first time.

While this has been a disappointing year for the 22-year-old outfielder, who missed more than two thirds of the season with a sprained right hand, Anthony has shown encouraging flashes since returning to the lineup in late August. He had a particularly eye-opening showing in the first game of Friday’s doubleheader, going 3 for 3 with hard hit balls to left, center and right field, and even during the periods he’s struggled Anthony has always had a knack for getting on base.

Now, with the turmoil of his first full season in the majors behind him, Anthony has a clean slate. He will presumably step to the plate first to lead off Game 1 at Yankee Stadium, and if he comes through he will have a chance to completely rewrite the story of his season.