By Jim Scott
DNAinfo Senior Editor
MANHATTAN — The Texas Rangers have never made it to the World Series and the New York Yankees want to keep it that way.
CC Sabathia will be on the mound as the Bronx Bombers open the American League Championship Series in Texas against the Rangers on Friday night.
The Rangers beat the Tampa Bay Rays 5-1 on Tuesday to win the first playoff series in franchise history and earned themselves a date with the winningest team in baseball history. The Yankees have won nine-straight postseason games against the Rangers and knocked Texas out of the postseason in 1996, 1998 and 1999.
New York, which has won 27 World Series titles, is counting on Sabathia to get them off to a good start in Texas.
Sabathia led the majors with 21 wins, but struggled in his playoff start in Minnesota. The big southpaw gave up four runs, three earned, and five hits in six innings of the Yankees 6-4 win over the Twins in Game 1 of the ALDS.
The Yankees, who swept the Twins in three games, caught a break by not having to face Rangers ace Cliff Lee in Game 1 of the ALCS. Lee has quickly earned a reputation as a dominant postseason pitcher with an 6-0 record in seven starts over the last two seasons. Lee allowed one run and struck out 11 to earn a complete game 5-1 win over the Rays in the series clincher on Tuesday.
The 32-year-old lefty won both of his World Series starts for Philadelphia last year, including a six-hitter at Yankee Stadium when he struck out 10 and gave up only an unearned run.
Instead, C.J. Wilson will pitch for the Rangers on Friday night and Lee will pitch in Game 3 and Game 7, if necessary. Wilson, 29, won his only postseason start against the Rays and led Texas with 15 wins this season thanks to a little help from Lee.
"We’ve shared information, ideas on how to pitch guys, what to do with certain things," Lee told the Associate Press about Wilson. "A lot of credit goes to his talents and just his stuff. He knows how to pitch."
