Elsa/Getty ImagesThe latest postseason clash between the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees picked up where the last one left off in 2004.With Boston on top.Although the Red Sox barely eked out a 5-4 win over their longtime nemeses in Game 1 of the American League Division Series on Friday http://www.redsoxproshops.com/authentic-mitch-moreland-jersey , the game somehow felt even closer than that.The early innings were a rout in favor of the home team. That had much to do with Chris Sale's triumphant return to power-pitching goodness on the run prevention side of things. On the other side, J.D. Martinez provided an early exclamation mark with a three-run home run in the first inning.MLB MLBGood times never seemed so good! #ALDS 236dsZXhxyIn the later innings, however, the Yankees sucked as much life as they could out of the capacity crowd at Fenway Park. The trick was to exploitthe Red Sox's not-so-secret Achilles' heel: their bullpen.Boston relievers technically had a solid season, putting up a 3.74 ERA that ranked ninth in Major League Baseball. But the front office and manager Alex Cora never figured out the bridge to ace closer Craig Kimbrel. It really started to show in September, as Boston's pen slumped to a 4.84 ERA.Signs of progress were not immediately apparent after Cora lifted Sale with one out in the sixth inning.Ryan Brasier allowed two of his inherited runners to score. The Yankees then loaded the bases with nobody out in the seventh, ultimately settling for one run. Cora resorted to bringing in 2016 AL Cy Young Award winner Rick Porcello to begin the eighth and then Kimbrel for a four-out save. He got it but not before surrendering a solo blast to Aaron Judge.Throughout all the late-inning drama, the sheer evenness of these Red Sox and Yankees teams was as tangible as the spines on a porcupine. Game 1 certainly felt like a showdown between two teams that combined for 208 victories in the regular season.Still, the Red Soxdidwin to grab a 1-0 series lead. And couched in how they did it are real positives.Tim Bradbury/Getty ImagesStart with Sale, who became the first Red Sox starter to pitch into the sixth inning of a postseason game since John Lackey in Game 6 of the 2013 World Series.The big question coming into Friday was whether Sale would regain any of the fastball velocity he'd been missing after returning from a second bout withshoulder inflammation on Sept. 11. Previously, he'd averaged 95 mph on his fastball. He averaged92.7 mph afterward, including 90.2 mph in his final regular-season tuneup Sept. 26.Cora tried to quell unrest by pointing to Sale's mechanics, not his shoulder."I don't feel that's the reason," the first-year skipper told reporters. "We've been talking about it the whole time, and we don't feel it's the shoulder. His mechanics were way off in the first outing, probably Tony Conigliaro Jersey , they got better, then all of the sudden last one it wasn't there. But we don't feel it has anything to do with the shoulder."Evidently, Sale has fixed what had been ailing him.He sat at 94.6 mph with his four-seamer in Game 1, with a peak of 96.6 mph. That made it easier for him to catch Yankees hitters off-guard with his slider and changeup, which drew nine whiffs out of 49 total pitches.Sale isn't all the way back to the otherworldly dominance (1.97 ERA and 219 strikeouts in 146 innings) he displayed through his first 23 starts. But he nonetheless looked the part of a Game 1 starter. Should the Red Sox need one, that's a solid assurance he can also be an ace in Game 4 or Game 5.Meanwhile, the Red Sox offense operated in much the same way it did all season.It revolved around Martinez, Mookie Betts, Xander Bogaerts and Andrew Benintendi. They provided six of the team's eight hits, as well as four of its five runs batted in. Most of this happened in two-plus innings of exposure to J.A. Happ, who was the Yankees' de facto ace down the stretch.Though nowhere near as big a concern as the team's bullpen, the shallowness of Boston's lineup around its big four is a red flag. Especially opposite the Yankees lineup, which got contributions from all over en route to a record 267 homers in the regular season.It is some comfort, however, that Martinez, Betts Rafael Devers Jersey , Bogaerts and Benintendi are all complete hitters who can hit good pitching. The Red Sox will be in good shape if they can keep throwing punches early鈥攑articularly if it's in tandem with more good starting pitching, which the Red Sox stand to get if David Price and Porcello pitch to their best abilities in Games 2 and 3.Of course, the Yankees don't necessarily have to be impressed by any of this.For them, it's a moral victory that Boston's best starter could only muster 16 outs in Game 1. Their harsh exposure of the Red Sox's bullpen is yet another moral victory. From here, it may not be that difficult to ride their bats and bullpen to a series tie and beyond. In either event, the Red Sox and Yankees have taken the first step toward another October classic.Stats courtesy of Baseball Reference, FanGraphs and Baseball Savant. HOUSTON — The Astros on Saturday added outfielder Myles Straw to the big-league roster with one primary objective: to utilize his exceptional speed on the basepaths as a pinch-runner.He may have the opportunity to continue doing that Sunday, when Houston hosts the Arizona Diamondbacks in the finale of their three-game series.Over 131 games across two levels in the minors, Straw posted 70 stolen bases and an 88.6 percent success rate. He produced 35 steals apiece for Double-A Corpus Christi and Triple-A Fresno.Article continues below ...“Speed is the most obvious thing that he adds,” Astros manager A.J. Hinch said. “You get into the type of (pennant) race that we’re in, you get into playoff-caliber baseball, any small advantage can be a big advantage. He’s an elite baserunner. His instincts are good, he’s a good outfielder. “His second half hasn’t gone as well as his first half offensively. We’re not going to ask a ton out of him playing-wise other than be an elite baserunner when we need it the most.”By limiting his responsibilities, the Astros (93-55), who evened the interleague set with a 10-4 victory Saturday, believe Straw can adjust quickly.“We’re literally asking him to take his best skill set on the bases and apply it to the major league level http://www.redsoxproshops.com/authentic-j.-d.-martinez-jersey ,” Hinch said of Straw, who pinch-ran in the seventh inning. “One of the reasons we feel comfortable with him in these last couple weeks is his instincts. And certainly, he’ll be a little bit nervous the first couple times out but we’re asking him to focus on one thing primarily, and that can ease a little bit of that stress that comes with getting into the big leagues.”Right-hander Justin Verlander (15-9, 2.72 ERA) will start the series finale for the Astros. Verlander has posted 10 double-digit strikeout games this season and is 11 strikeouts shy of matching his single-season high of 269 set in 2009 with the Detroit Tigers.He is 3-1 with a 2.36 ERA over four career starts against Arizona, including a 3-1 loss on May 6 at Chase Field when he surrendered two runs (one earned) on three hits and three walks with eight strikeouts over six innings. Verlander is 2-0 with a 1.93 ERA and 18 strikeouts over 14 innings this month.The Diamondbacks (78-71) will counter with right-hander Zack Greinke (14-9, 3.11 ERA). Greinke is 7-2 with a 2.75 ERA over his last 11 road starts and 5-4 with a 2.43 ERA in his last 11 interleague starts.He is 6-2 with a 2.24 ERA over 10 career starts against the Astros. He did not factor into the decision May 5 when he allowed one run on five hits and two walks with five strikeouts over 5 2/3 innings in a 4-3 victory at Chase Field.Arizona on Saturday selected right-hander Randall Delgado from Triple-A Reno and placed right-hander Clay Buchholz on the 60-day disabled list (right elbow flexor strain). Delgado appeared in six games for the Diamondbacks this season, going 2-0 with a 5.14 ERA before being designated for assignment July 25, released six days later, and re-signed to a minor league contract Aug. 18. He posted a 0.93 ERA over five games with Reno after his signing before finishing with a 2.00 ERA in 13 contests.“We’re all super excited to have him back,” Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said. “We need an arm and he had been keeping himself in shape and talking about going to winter ball.“We know what Randall is all about. Stuff-wise he was trending toward the Randall that we remember at the end of the minor league season so he’s going to get the ball. My expectations are that we’re going to use him in different situations, maybe not high-leverage right now, but different situations to stop momentum and get big outs for us.”The Diamondbacks are four games behind the first-place Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League West and 3 1/2 back of Colorado for the final NL wild-card spot.