While the National League championship is being contested by two teams who pulled off upsets in the Divisional Series, the best teams in the American League will be going at it for the right to go to the World Series.

The Houston Astros are playing host to the New York Yankees in Game 1 of the ALCS, which begins at 7:37 PM ET at Minute Maid Park in Houston.

Jameson Taillon will be getting the start in Wednesday's Game 1 for the Yankees, while two-time Cy Young winner Justin Verlander goes for the Astros.

At BetOnline, the Astros are the favorites in the Game 1 MLB playoff betting odds:

Houston Astros (Verlander) -178
New York Yankees (Taillon) +164

Over 7 Runs +103
Under 7 Ruins -123

Astros -1.5 Runs +125
Yankees +1.5 Runs -145

Houston is a -190 favorite in the series, while the Yankees are priced at +165.

The Yankees caught a break with a rainout before Game 5 of their series against Cleveland, and this allowed them to start Nestor Cortes, who pitched five outstanding innings. A three-run homer by Giancarlo Stanton in the first inning sealed things for the Bronx Bombers.

The Astros swept the Seattle Mariners, and things concluded with an epic 18-inning contest which ended with a clinching blow by rookie shortstop Jeremy Pena. This will be the sixth straight time they have played in the American League Championship Series.

Of course, there is the lingering bitterness on the part of the Yankees as regards the 2017 postseason, when the Astros were stealing signs, something which came out a few years later.

Aaron Judge was one of the people most upset, and after a season when he hit 62 homers to set an AL record, he had four hits in 20 at bats in the ALDS, striking out eleven times. He and his teammates will have to contend with Verlander, who dropped some great numbers this season, as he could win his third Cy Young Award. His 1.75 ERA and 0.83 WHIP ratio were better than they were in 2011, when he won the Cy Young AND the MVP. And he is doing this at age 39.

Verlander, who has gone more than 200 innings a dozen times, logged only 175 innings this season. He should be fresh; and he's coming off a rough outing in the ALDS, surrendering six runs and 10 hits in four innings against Seattle. On June 24, he gave up just one run in seven innings against the Yankees.

Taillon (14-5, 3.91 ERA) hasn't pitched since October 4, when he had a subpar showing against Texas (four runs in six innings). He gave up six runs and ten hits before being lifted in the sixth inning against New York on June 23.

Verlander has gone beyond the sixth inning just twice in his last nine starts. The Astros are fortunate in that they can turn to a strong bullpen, which posted the best ERA in the National League.

He has handled most Yankees easily; Judge and Stanton have hit a combined four homers in 41 at bats against him. But they've had only six hits overall. The guy who has done the most damage against him is two-time batting champ DJ LaMahieu, who's gone eight for 23 with two homers. But DJ, who's got a bad toe, was left off the ALCS roster by manager Aaron Boone.

Houston can keep throwing arms at its opponents. The Yankees have a bullpen that could probably use a day or two off. We'll go with the home favorite here.

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