“THESEEEEEEEEEE LITTLE TOWN BLUESSSSSS.”The Yankees are on their way to the ALDS, after beating the Red Sox in three games at the Stadium. I’m reporting live to you from Rome’s Fiumicino Airport, waiting on my flight back to the Big Apple. Over two weeks in Europe I’ve been staying away monitoring MLB At Bat game cast waiting on “in play runs” to appear and watching highlights in the morning before going out on tours across Europe. If saw a big guy in a Yankee hat in France, Corsica, Italy or Spain in these last two weeks, chances are, it was me!

Sweating out playoff games before you fall asleep isn’t fun and going into this do or die game, I was probably at my worst. Mrs. Breakdown and I had just concluded a four hour journey from Sorrento to Rome and lost out on final night dinner plans…the vibes were low. I was worried the Yanks would lose but they came through. Of all the possible ways game three of the Wild Card series could have played out, last nights version of the game was probably the most unlikely. That is no disrespect to Cam Schlittler, as I have enjoyed his work this season, but when I woke up in my hotel room my reaction was something close to “Holy Schlitt.”

This wasn’t just a good performance, it was historically good performance in Yankee history. The 24-year-old kid out there with the calm and patience of a 34-year-old playoff battle hardened vet. We have been very fortunate as Yankee fans to see great postseason performances from Whitey Ford, Ron Guidry, Andy Pettitte, CC Sabathia, and so many more. Last night evoked memories of all that good history as Schlittler dominated the Yankees arch nemesis with it all on the line. He joined some very elite company in doing so.

We have all been able to tell Schlittler has the stuff to pitch at this level since he came up, but he’s had to work at harnessing it and pitching with composure. He did both of those things against Boston and added intensity to the mix, making a nightmare matchup. Alex Cora said after the game his team “had to be perfect” because Schlittler was and that’s one hell of a spot to put your opponents in.

Yankee starting pitching was really strong in the series overall as Fried pitched very well in a game one loss and Rodon battled in the game two win. Meanwhile the bullpen performed pretty well itself, with David Bednar putting a tack on game one run behind him to pick up a pair of saves, Fernando Cruz emphatically escaped danger and Devin Williams pitched well in a 3-3 tie in game two. Yes Luke Weaver struggled and needs to be much better, but so far early returns are good down there, in part because they’re not asking that much of the bullpen with how deep the starters have gone.

We talked in our series preview about the Yankee offense and how it might function in this series. We knew they would play a variety of guys to check boxes in various roles along the way. All of the utility players they added at the deadline played a part in this series, some even more pivotal than others. I don’t think many of us had Ahmed Rosario playing the do or die game and driving in a key run, but that’s baseball Suzyn. Austin Wells chipped in with three RBI’s between game two game and game three, including the game winner in the former. It took a village to beat Boston but that’s A-ok if you win.

The regulars were involved as well, with Ben Rice hitting a key homer in game two, and Anthony Volpe had a good series with the bat as well. Jazz Chisholm chipped in with his excellent base running in game two as he scored the winning run all the way around from first base. Chisholm was understandably frustrated he didn’t start in game one but he responded appropriately with his effort the next night.

I know everyone was focused on Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton and Cody Bellinger. Judge had the best series of the three with a couple of hits and an RBI. Ideally they’ll only improve from here, but it’s a good sign that the rest of the group is backing them up no matter who plays, as it takes depth to win in October.

Winning this series feels like a big weight lifted off the Yankees shoulders. Having dropped their last three playoff meetings with the Sox, and not beating a non-AL Central team in the playoffs since 2012 when the knocked out the Orioles. The issue with exhaling now is that the road to title 28 is only just beginning with another AL East rival ahead. Since the Yanks lost the division they will begin the ALDS Saturday in Ontario, in what should be a contentious series.

Vladdy and the Jays have hated the Yankees for some time now, but haven’t really gotten a chance to take them down in October like other teams in the AL. They will be their usual aggressive selves, challenging the Yankee defense to throw them out and make plays in the field. This style gave the Yankees trouble in the regular season, as Toronto won eight of the 13 head to head matchups. Though much like Boston, the Yanks beat Toronto two out of three in September and played an all around cleaner game. Toronto has yet to name a game one starter, but it’s safe to assume the Yanks will go with Luis Gil, Max Fried, Carlos Rodon and Schlittler if he is needed again. That’s a decided advantage over anything the Jays will throw at them, but don’t sleep on their arms.

I’m one for one on series picks as I had the Yanks winning in three, so let’s make two for two. I’ll go with the Yankees in four, cause there is nothing better than clinching in the Bronx. Now it’s wheels up for me, I’ll be back watching in the proper time zone in eight hours. Arrivederci Italy, bring on Toronto!

On twitter you can find Mike @Mike_Sheerin, Tyler @TMon_19 and Sean @SeanMartinNFL. Subscribe to the site by hitting the follow button in the bottom right corner and entering your email address. Check out our Instagram feed @thebroadwaybreakdownsports for special gameday and promotional content. Our podcasts are available on Spotify. Visit the Rangers Ed Shop by clicking the link on our homepage. Check out our mailbag page to join the conversation here on the site and on our partners show, The Rangers Ed Podcast! We’ll be back with more soon.