As the New York Yankees prepare to host the Cleveland Guardians for Game 1 of the ALCS on Monday night, a former Yankee believes the team has an “easy path” to the World Series.

Alex Rodriguez knows what it feels like to win a World Series in New York. In fact, the last time the Yankees won the trophy was in 2009, when Rodriguez was part of a strong Yankees team that defeated the Philadelphia Phillies to win the franchise's 27th MLB title.

When Rodriguez's Yankees teammate, Hall of Famer Derek Jeter, appeared on the Fox Sports panel after Game 1 of the NLCS, in which the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the New York Mets to strike first in the series, he talked about the odds the Yankees to reach the World Series championship.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM

Fox Sports broadcasters, from left: Kevin Burkhardt, Alex Rodriguez, David Ortiz and Derek Jeter before Game 5 between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Diego Padres of the NLDS. (Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images)

“You never want to say that. The road to the World Series is never easy, but if the Yankees could choose their opponents, I think they would have the two they would choose based on the success they had against the AL Central.” Jeter explained.

Rodriguez went into the series much more strongly with his thoughts.

“You don’t have to say it, I’ll say it: You have an easy path to the World Series,” Rodriguez responded.

“See, it’s never easy, is it? But this is the clearest path in 20 years.”

Some Yankees fans might call Rodriguez's comments a curse, while Guardians fans might hope their team uses something like this as “bulletin board material” or fuel to turn Rodriguez around in this best-of-seven battle to prove.

NEW YORK MAYOR ERIC ADAMS ROASTED FOR BOTH WEARING YANKEES, WITH METS LOGOS ON HAT

But there is some support Rodriguez has for his commentary on the Yankees' clearest path in the last two decades.

It's no secret that New York has been trying to reach the World Series for a long time, not since Rodriguez and Jeter lifted the trophy at Yankee Stadium in 2009. They have made it to the ALCS in recent years but couldn't get past the Houston Astros in 2017, 2019 and 2022.

Well, Yankees fans were thrilled when the Detroit Tigers defeated the Astros in the Wild Card round, knowing they wouldn't have to see them at any point on their hopeful path to the Fall Classic.

Former New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez is introduced at the Old-Timers Day ceremony at Yankee Stadium. (Wendell Cruz-USA Today Sports)

Then, while waiting for an opponent between the Kansas City Royals and the Baltimore Orioles, Yankees fans admitted that they would rather see the former because the latter had been causing them problems in their AL East schedule all season. The Orioles were 8-5 against the Yankees in the 2024 regular season.

When the Royals eliminated the Orioles, Yankees fans were once again pleased with the results. New York would eventually complete its ALDS win at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, beating the Royals in Game 4 to advance.

Meanwhile, the Guardians come to the Bronx with a lot of momentum after Lane Thomas hit AL Cy Young leader Tarik Skubal in Game 5 of the ALDS with a grand slam that ultimately clinched the Cinderella story this postseason the Tigers meant.

The Guardians have recently seen the Yankees in the postseason, with New York defeating them in five games of the 2022 ALDS. And while the Yankees are the top seed, Cleveland enters this series with an impressive bullpen and the second-best batting average among the four teams remaining in the postseason (.234).

The Yankees are hitting .220, with AL MVP leader Aaron Judge struggling with just two hits in four games so far. However, the Yankees lost 4-2 to the Guardians this season and they will be looking to repeat those four wins to secure a spot in a series that has become elusive for them despite the talent and payroll.

Alex Rodriguez before the game between New York and the Los Angeles Dodgers at Yankee Stadium. (Vincent Carchietta – USA Today Sports)

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

It's never an easy road, but Rodriguez is clearly confident that this is the best chance the Yankees have had since he wore the pinstripes.

Follow Fox News Digital Sports coverage of Xand subscribe the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.