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HOUSTON — The New York Yankees made several changes as they announced their 26-man roster for the American League Championship Series against the Houston Astros.

The No. 1-seeded Astros, on the other hand, made only one addition, with both teams going with an even split between pitchers and position players with 13 apiece.

The Yankees chose to include one more pitcher for the best-of-seven ALCS, one less than they had for the division series against Cleveland in which they got past the Guardians in five games.

Trade-deadline acquisition Frankie Montas, who has been on the injured list since mid-September after receiving a cortisone shot to treat right shoulder inflammation, was included on the 13-man pitching staff. Montas did not pitch to expectations after being acquired by the Yankees before the Aug. 2 trade deadline, going 1-3 with a 6.35 ERA in eight starts.

The Yankees are counting on Montas’ vast experience against the Astros, with the 29-year-old pitching the last six seasons with the Oakland Athletics. Montas is 8-5 with a 3.40 ERA in 15 career games against Houston (13 starts), including a 3-2 record and 3.86 ERA in six career games at Minute Maid Park.

The Yankees also opted to leave out long man Lucas Luetge, who did not pitch in the divisional round against Cleveland despite having been included in the active roster. The club went instead with rookie pitcher Greg Weissert, with fellow rookie reliever Ron Marinaccio not medically cleared after having to deal with a lingering shin injury.

Veteran utility man Marwin Gonzalez, who only saw limited action in the previous round, was also left off the AL Championship Series roster, as well as versatile infielder DJ LeMahieu.

LeMahieu has not been able to play in any postseason games because of a right foot injury that landed him on the injured list back in September. LeMahieu was hopeful that he would be able to be activated after doing baseball activities while rehabbing and taking batting practice the last few weeks, but the Yankees chose to go with rookie Oswald Peraza as a healthier reserve option.

The rookie Peraza, who plays most infield positions but is a natural shortstop, was a spark plug for the Yankees as they struggled down the stretch, hitting .306/.404/.429 over 18 games since making his MLB debut Sept. 2.

With Peraza on the roster, it is likely that fellow Venezuelan rookie Oswaldo Cabrera will now mostly be relegated to the outfield since the Yankees did not include an additional player to replace left fielder Aaron Hicks. Hicks’ season came to an end after suffering a left knee injury in Game 5 of the division series against the Guardians after a collision in shallow left field with Cabrera, who started Game 5 of the division series at Yankee Stadium at shortstop.

Pinch-running specialist Tim Locastro made the roster once again, and will be an option in the outfield after playing 26 games in the outfield this regular season, mostly as a defensive replacement. Cabrera has also played 37 games in the outfield, including three this postseason.

And Matt Carpenter, who made the ALCS roster after being activated for the ALDS after being out with a foot fracture since Aug. 8, will also be an option, having had 15 outfield appearances for the Yankees. Carpenter, who has been limited to a lefty bat off the bench, has said that he feels healthy and that playing the outfield could be an option for him.

The Astros mostly kept the same roster they used for the division series against Seattle, where they swept the Mariners in three games. The only change in Dusty Baker’s roster was the inclusion of one more pitcher for the longer series — Seth Martinez — leaving out outfielder Jake Myers.

The Astros will face a right-handed-heavy lineup in this series against New York, and Martinez, who made his first career postseason roster, finished the 2022 regular season with a 2.09 ERA and 38 strikeouts in 28⅔ innings pitched, holding opponents to a .187 batting average, and right-handed hitters to a .135 BA.

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QB Castellanos exits after losing BC starting job

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QB Castellanos exits after losing BC starting job

Boston College quarterback Thomas Castellanos, who lost his starting job earlier this week, will not be returning to the team, he announced Thursday night.

Castellanos, who started 12 games last season and retained the top job under new coach Bill O’Brien, wrote on X that “unfortunately, all good things come to an end, even though it’s sooner than I would like.” He did not mention the transfer portal in his departing message and has not officially entered it. The junior from Waycross, Georgia, started his career at UCF and appeared in five games in 2022.

O’Brien said Tuesday that Grayson James, who replaced Castellanos in last week’s win against Syracuse, will start Saturday when Boston College visits No. 14 SMU. Castellanos “wasn’t real thrilled” with the decision, O’Brien said, adding that the quarterback decided to step away from the team for several days.

Castellanos had 2,248 passing yards and 1,113 rushing yards last season under coach Jeff Hafley, passing for 15 touchdowns and adding 13 on the ground. He had 18 touchdown passes and only five interceptions this season, but his accuracy dipped in recent weeks, and he completed only 2 of 7 passes against Syracuse before being replaced.

In his statement, Castellanos thanked both coaching staffs he played for at Boston College and wrote that he had “some of the best experiences of my life in the Eagles Nest and I will truly cherish these memories forever.”

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Gators’ Lagway ‘ready to play,’ will start vs. LSU

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Gators' Lagway 'ready to play,' will start vs. LSU

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida quarterback DJ Lagway is “ready to play,” coach Billy Napier said Thursday on his weekly radio show.

Napier removed Lagway from the team’s injury report and penciled him in to start against No. 21 LSU in the Swamp on Saturday.

Lagway practiced every day this week while progressing from a strained left hamstring. The highly touted freshman was carted off the field against Georgia on Nov. 2. Tests revealed a “less significant” injury than initially feared, and now he’s back in time to face the Tigers.

The Gators (4-5, 2-4 Southeastern Conference) need him. They have to win two of their final three regular-season games to become bowl eligible.

LSU (6-3, 3-2) has struggled mightily against dual-threat QBs, including Alabama’s Jalen Milroe, who ran for 185 yards and four touchdowns last week.

Lagway returns after walk-on and Yale transfer Aidan Warner started in his place against Texas. Warner threw two interceptions and was 12-of-25 passing for 132 yards in a 49-17 loss.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Georgia leading rusher Etienne ruled out vs. Vols

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Georgia leading rusher Etienne ruled out vs. Vols

No. 12 Georgia will be without leading rusher Trevor Etienne for Saturday’s showdown against No. 7 Tennessee.

Etienne was downgraded from questionable to out on Thursday night’s SEC availability report.

Etienne left Georgia’s win over Florida with an upper-body injury on Nov. 2 and did not return. He played limited snaps in last week’s 28-10 loss at Ole Miss, carrying the ball six times for 24 yards.

Etienne leads the Bulldogs with 477 rushing yards and seven touchdowns this season.

The loss is another blow to Georgia’s banged-up backfield. Cash Jones is also listed as questionable while Branson Robinson remains out after missing the past three games with a knee injury.

That leaves true freshman Nate Frazier as the only healthy Bulldogs running back who has played meaningful snaps this year. Frazier is second on the team with 333 rushing yards and three touchdowns.

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