We watched the Yankees beat Stymie Guardian hitters in Game 1 of the ALCS, racking up a total of 14 strikeouts – nine of which came to Carlos Rodon in a classy six-inning start.

As the ball is handed off to Gerrit Cole at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday, I don't expect the same volume from the Bombers' ace.

Cole's speed took a hit after he returned to the rotation in June following rehab for elbow inflammation that kept him on the injured list for 75 games. It took some time for him to stabilize his pitch count and overall command, and although he made ten starts with six or more strikeouts, the consistency of his pitch execution was not the same as in years past.

Cole's strikeout-per-nine rate fell for the third straight week to 9.38.

Yankees vs. Guardians ALCS Game 2 odds

There were just four strikeouts in his triumph against Kansas City, but it was Cole's ability to effectively maneuver the strikeout zone to allow zero walks that helped him last seven innings.

Cole masterfully avoided power zones, even as he kept the ball in play with ground balls and flyouts and let his defense clean up after him.

The Royals finished the game with the second-fewest strikeouts; Cleveland hit the fourth fewest times.

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In the Yankees' 6-0 win on August 22, Cole led the Guardians to one hit in six innings but struck out just two of them.

This popular notion that the Yankees have a red carpet lead to the World Series has some merit, considering their ice-cold Statcast profile, which reflects an absolute last place finish in almost every advanced contact statistic – especially the weakest MLB team exit velocity.

But even though the Yankees dwarf them in hitting power, the Guardians have survived up to this point with dogged plate discipline.

Cleveland swung and missed at a rate of 23 percent — the fifth-lowest percentage — and connected on 83.5 of the throws distributed in the strike zone, according to Statcast.

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Even with Cole flirting with the outside world, his pursuit rate dropped to a pedestrian 66 percentile and the Guardians connected on 60.5 pitches they pursued.

The public is raving about the Yankees winning Game 2 with a 97 percent win margin. That kind of love brings me to Cleveland's potential to hit Cole a little harder in early frames.

THE GAME: Gerrit Cole under 5.5 strikeouts (-120, BetMGM)

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Sean Stangedi covers NFL, NHL, MLB and college football for the New York Post. He focuses primarily on decisions that reflect market value while tracking trends to mitigate risk.