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Red Sox vs. Astros, AL Division Series (0-0)


Date: Thursday, Oct. 5 
Time: 4:08 p.m. ET
Location: Minute Maid Park -- Houston, Texas
Starting Pitchers:  Chris Sale (17-8) vs. Justin Verlander (15-8)
TV Channel: MLB Network (check local listings)
Online Stream: Watch MLB Network
Live Stats: GameTracker

With the wild-card round in the books, the division series get underway. Chris Sale will throw the first pitch for the Boston Red Sox against the 101-win Houston Astros, who are making just their second playoff appearance as an AL team. In 2015, the Astros made it out of the wild card before losing to the Team of Destiny Royals in the division series. This time, however, the Astros hold the upper hand. They came in second in the American League behind only the Indians, and it's the first time they've held home-field advantage as an American League team.

This is what the Astros brought Justin Verlander on for. The long-time Tigers ace will pit his 3.36 ERA against Sale's 2.90, as he tries to help the Astros take a 1-0 lead over the Red Sox. The Red Sox had a grueling regular season, edging out the New York Yankees for first in the AL East, but their lives won't get any easier. Dustin Pedroia, Xander Bogaerts and Christian Vasquez will have their work cut out for them against Verlander and Houston, who don't want to find the brakes on the train that they're riding any time soon.

Both teams will be fresh and have their full bullpens at their disposal, but expect to see a bit more patience regarding starters than what we got in the wild-card round -- wild-card games are sprints, and although it's only best-of-5 in the division series, it's still a marathon.