Game 1 went to New York. The clincher belonged to Cody Bellinger, who sent New York into the Division Series and left Boston with a winter to think about it. Sporting News called it embarrassing Boston "again," and the adverb is doing honest work. A best-of-three exists to give the underdog a fighting chance. Boston got two games of it.

The Wild Card round is the sport's shortest argument. Nobody gets a rotation, a bullpen plan or a second chance to explain themselves. The Yankees came in with a lineup that could end a game in one swing, and Boston's season was over before the series had a chance to get long.

Now comes the luxury problem. Yahoo reports Aaron Judge spoke ahead of the Rays showdown, and Bolavip frames New York's Game 1 choice as Gerrit Cole or Carlos Rodon. Most teams in October would give a lot to have one ace, never mind two to choose between. The Yankees have a payroll built to produce exactly that dilemma, and a fan base that will call it a failure if it produces anything less than a parade.

The other side of the bracket is gathering. The Braves wait on the Dodgers in the NLDS, and Los Angeles says Shohei Ohtani is healthy after his injuries. A Yankees-Dodgers October is the matchup every broadcaster in America is quietly pricing. First, though, there is Tampa Bay, which has no interest in being a plot point.

Boston left the stadium having lost twice to the same team in the same week. The Yankees left with their rotation decision still ahead of them, which is the only kind of problem worth having in October.