Yankees can wrap up AL East vs. Red Sox
A playoff berth already clinched, the Yankees can claim the AL East title this weekend in New York against the rival Red Sox. Andy Pettitte follows Joba Chamberlain and C.C. Sabathia to the Bronx bump on Sunday.
The Yankees and Red Sox meet for the sixth and final time this weekend in the Bronx, and for once I can say with actual journalistic integrity that this is the biggest series of the season between the rivals.
New York is up 5.5 games on Boston heading into the three-game series, but that doesn’t mean the Yanks are going to take it easy on the BoSox. There’s still enough time for the Red Sox to catch the Bombers for first place. Boston hosts Toronto for a three-gamer before a four-game set with Cleveland at Fenway Park following its series with the Yankees, who finish the season with three against Kansas City and three at Tampa Bay.
More importantly, the American League Wild Card team is going to match up with the Angels in the Division Series. New York has either Detroit or Minnesota on its radar, so there’s no way it wants to give Boston a glimmer of hope this weekend.
Red Sox (+155) at Yankees (-175)
Boston (91-61, +16.35 units) comes into the weekend as the hottest moneyline wagers in baseball, with 11 victories in their last 14 games. The Red Sox have stepped it up enough to put some heat on New York (97-56, +9.71 units), which took two of three at Angel Stadium against Los Angeles earlier this week.
The Red Sox hand the ball to Jon Lester (14-7, 3.33 ERA) in Friday night’s opener (7:05 PM ET), while the Yankees counter with Joba Chamberlain (8-6, 4.72 ERA). Boston is 3-0 during Lester’s last three starts, during which the lefthander has put up a 1.29 ERA. Lester’s recent success fits into a larger trend that’s seen him allow more than three earned runs only once in his last 20 starts.
Chamberlain will be on a pitch count once again on Friday night, which isn’t the best thing for Yankees backers. The big righthander has a 7.87 ERA since New York made the move to save his arm at the end of August, so hopefully Chamberlain is done early – or before the BoSox get to him.
Oddsmakers have Boston as -130 chalk on the betting odds board for the first game of the series, with the total listed at 9.5. New York is priced as a +110 underdog, although it was available at +115 at some locations as of early Friday morning.
The Red Sox are the sharp play on Friday night, and if you’re looking at taking the value in terms of series prices, you’ll also be siding with Daisuke Matsuzaka (3-5, 6.80 ERA) for Saturday’s matchup (4:10 PM ET). Dice-K has allowed only three runs over 11 1-3 innings since coming off the disabled list on September 15, as Boston has grabbed the cash in both his starts.
Yanks ace CC Sabathia (18-7, 3.31 ERA) goes against Matsuzaka on Saturday, and he’s sure to see plenty of chalk from oddsmakers. New York has moneyline wins in each of Sabathia’s last 10 outings, while the big southpaw has a sparkling 1.71 ERA in his last three trips to the bump. The reason to bet against Sabathia? He’s only 6-7 with a 4.23 ERA in day games this season. He’ll also go up against a BoSox team that’s hitting .320 against lefthanders in their last 10 ballgames.
Andy Pettitte (13-7, 4.15 ERA) matches up with Paul Byrd (1-2, 6.04 ERA) in Sunday’s series finale (1:05 PM ET). Byrd has made only two starts on the road this season, and they’ve both been ugly: He’s 0-2 with a 12.00 ERA away from Fenway Park in his reprise with the Red Sox.
Pettitte has made three starts against Boston this season, most recently on August 21 at Yankee Stadium. The veteran lefty was rocked for seven runs – five earned – over five innings in the Yanks’ 20-11 win over the Red Sox as -110 chalk. Overall, Pettitte is 1-1 with a 4.00 ERA against Boston this season.
The BoSox lead the season series 9-6, but it should be noted they cashed the first eight games between the teams this season. The Yankees have taken four of six at Yankee Stadium, including a four-game sweep last month when they outscored the Red Sox 25-8.
A playoff berth already clinched, the Yankees can claim the AL East title this weekend in New York against the rival Red Sox. Andy Pettitte follows Joba Chamberlain and C.C. Sabathia to the Bronx bump on Sunday.
The Yankees and Red Sox meet for the sixth and final time this weekend in the Bronx, and for once I can say with actual journalistic integrity that this is the biggest series of the season between the rivals.
New York is up 5.5 games on Boston heading into the three-game series, but that doesn’t mean the Yanks are going to take it easy on the BoSox. There’s still enough time for the Red Sox to catch the Bombers for first place. Boston hosts Toronto for a three-gamer before a four-game set with Cleveland at Fenway Park following its series with the Yankees, who finish the season with three against Kansas City and three at Tampa Bay.
More importantly, the American League Wild Card team is going to match up with the Angels in the Division Series. New York has either Detroit or Minnesota on its radar, so there’s no way it wants to give Boston a glimmer of hope this weekend.
Red Sox (+155) at Yankees (-175)
Boston (91-61, +16.35 units) comes into the weekend as the hottest moneyline wagers in baseball, with 11 victories in their last 14 games. The Red Sox have stepped it up enough to put some heat on New York (97-56, +9.71 units), which took two of three at Angel Stadium against Los Angeles earlier this week.
The Red Sox hand the ball to Jon Lester (14-7, 3.33 ERA) in Friday night’s opener (7:05 PM ET), while the Yankees counter with Joba Chamberlain (8-6, 4.72 ERA). Boston is 3-0 during Lester’s last three starts, during which the lefthander has put up a 1.29 ERA. Lester’s recent success fits into a larger trend that’s seen him allow more than three earned runs only once in his last 20 starts.
Chamberlain will be on a pitch count once again on Friday night, which isn’t the best thing for Yankees backers. The big righthander has a 7.87 ERA since New York made the move to save his arm at the end of August, so hopefully Chamberlain is done early – or before the BoSox get to him.
Oddsmakers have Boston as -130 chalk on the betting odds board for the first game of the series, with the total listed at 9.5. New York is priced as a +110 underdog, although it was available at +115 at some locations as of early Friday morning.
The Red Sox are the sharp play on Friday night, and if you’re looking at taking the value in terms of series prices, you’ll also be siding with Daisuke Matsuzaka (3-5, 6.80 ERA) for Saturday’s matchup (4:10 PM ET). Dice-K has allowed only three runs over 11 1-3 innings since coming off the disabled list on September 15, as Boston has grabbed the cash in both his starts.
Yanks ace CC Sabathia (18-7, 3.31 ERA) goes against Matsuzaka on Saturday, and he’s sure to see plenty of chalk from oddsmakers. New York has moneyline wins in each of Sabathia’s last 10 outings, while the big southpaw has a sparkling 1.71 ERA in his last three trips to the bump. The reason to bet against Sabathia? He’s only 6-7 with a 4.23 ERA in day games this season. He’ll also go up against a BoSox team that’s hitting .320 against lefthanders in their last 10 ballgames.
Andy Pettitte (13-7, 4.15 ERA) matches up with Paul Byrd (1-2, 6.04 ERA) in Sunday’s series finale (1:05 PM ET). Byrd has made only two starts on the road this season, and they’ve both been ugly: He’s 0-2 with a 12.00 ERA away from Fenway Park in his reprise with the Red Sox.
Pettitte has made three starts against Boston this season, most recently on August 21 at Yankee Stadium. The veteran lefty was rocked for seven runs – five earned – over five innings in the Yanks’ 20-11 win over the Red Sox as -110 chalk. Overall, Pettitte is 1-1 with a 4.00 ERA against Boston this season.
The BoSox lead the season series 9-6, but it should be noted they cashed the first eight games between the teams this season. The Yankees have taken four of six at Yankee Stadium, including a four-game sweep last month when they outscored the Red Sox 25-8.
