MLB odds List Yankees as Huge Favorites to Finish Astros Sweep
Houston's fast start to June has come to a screeching halt in the Bronx this weekend, with Phil Hughes and the New York Yankees set to finish the sweep on Sunday.
Sunday's series finale between the Astros and Yankees in New York is a mismatch on paper. It might be an even bigger mismatch on the baseball diamond.
The series has certainly been viewed as a mismatch according to MLB odds. New York opened as 275-290 favorites in Game 1 on Friday before being bet down to 235-250. The Yanks jumped to an early 3-0 lead in the first and held on for the 4-3 win to give former Astro Andy Pettitte his 200th win in Pinstripes.
Saturday's skirmish went the other way at the baseball betting board with New York opening around 220-230 before being bet up to the 240-250 range at most shops by the first pitch. The Yankees powered their way to a 9-3 victory behind two home runs from captain Derek Jeter and one blast by Jorge Posada. Both veterans drove in four runs.
Now Houston turns to right-hander Brian Moehler (2-1, 6.12) in the Game 3 of the set with Phil Hughes (9-2, 2.71) getting the call for New York. The early lines are the heaviest of the series for the Yanks who are prohibitive 300-320 chalk. The total is set at nine.
Moehler is making his fourth consecutive start for Houston after opening 2010 with 12 relief appearances. He moved into the rotation at the end of May for the injured Bud Norris and was immediately clubbed by the Reds in Cincinnati, last less than three innings, giving up eight runs and serving up three long balls in a 12-2 Astros loss.
His two starts since have been much better, to say the least, though Moehler didn't earn a decision in either of the Houston wins, including this past Tuesday in Colorado. The Rockies tacked on three first-inning runs but Moehler settled down after that with five scoreless innings of the Astros' eventual 4-3 triumph.
Moehler has seen some of the Yankees before going back to his days with the Marlins and Tigers. He was with Florida the last time he started a game in the Bronx, dropping a 6-5 decision to the Pinstripes in June 2006, charged with all six Yankees runs.
Hughes will be out for his fourth consecutive win after hitting a bit of a bump in mid-May. The New York righty has beaten the Indians once and Orioles twice in his last three starts, so he's familiar with weak lineups like the one Houston will send out on Sunday.
It will be the first time Hughes has faced the Astros in his career, with Jason Michaels (0-for-2) the only Houston hitter with any experience against him.
Ted Barrett is in line to call the balls and strikes. All 14 of his plate assignments for 2010 have seen the home team favored and the home fans going happy nine times. The 'over' has a slight 7-5-2 overall edge, with games in the 8½-10 range level at 4-4-1.
Bronx weather calls for partly cloudy skies and a 30 percent chance of a rogue thunderstorm. A muggy 80ºF is forecast for the 1:05 p.m. first pitch with ENE winds at 5-10 mph (in from left-center to the 1B on deck circle).
Both teams take a day off on Monday before continuing their interleague schedules. The Yankees remain in New York to meet the Phillies in a rematch of the 2009 World Series. The series opener will match up two of the biggest names on the mound when Roy Halladay (8-5, 1.96) starts for the Phils against the Yanks' C.C. Sabathia (7-6, 4.01).
Houston finishes up a 10-game road trip in Kansas City with three games starting Tuesday. Astros right-hander Felipe Paulino (4-8, 3.82) is scheduled to face the Royals Kyle Davies (6-6, 5.48) in Game 1.
NOTE: The W-L records shown for starting pitchers are their team's W-L mark when they started games in the 2010 season. Statistical sources for this article were Retrosheet.org, Baseball-Reference.com, ESPN.com and, of course, S-BEE-R-dot-com.
Houston's fast start to June has come to a screeching halt in the Bronx this weekend, with Phil Hughes and the New York Yankees set to finish the sweep on Sunday.
Sunday's series finale between the Astros and Yankees in New York is a mismatch on paper. It might be an even bigger mismatch on the baseball diamond.
The series has certainly been viewed as a mismatch according to MLB odds. New York opened as 275-290 favorites in Game 1 on Friday before being bet down to 235-250. The Yanks jumped to an early 3-0 lead in the first and held on for the 4-3 win to give former Astro Andy Pettitte his 200th win in Pinstripes.
Saturday's skirmish went the other way at the baseball betting board with New York opening around 220-230 before being bet up to the 240-250 range at most shops by the first pitch. The Yankees powered their way to a 9-3 victory behind two home runs from captain Derek Jeter and one blast by Jorge Posada. Both veterans drove in four runs.
Now Houston turns to right-hander Brian Moehler (2-1, 6.12) in the Game 3 of the set with Phil Hughes (9-2, 2.71) getting the call for New York. The early lines are the heaviest of the series for the Yanks who are prohibitive 300-320 chalk. The total is set at nine.
Moehler is making his fourth consecutive start for Houston after opening 2010 with 12 relief appearances. He moved into the rotation at the end of May for the injured Bud Norris and was immediately clubbed by the Reds in Cincinnati, last less than three innings, giving up eight runs and serving up three long balls in a 12-2 Astros loss.
His two starts since have been much better, to say the least, though Moehler didn't earn a decision in either of the Houston wins, including this past Tuesday in Colorado. The Rockies tacked on three first-inning runs but Moehler settled down after that with five scoreless innings of the Astros' eventual 4-3 triumph.
Moehler has seen some of the Yankees before going back to his days with the Marlins and Tigers. He was with Florida the last time he started a game in the Bronx, dropping a 6-5 decision to the Pinstripes in June 2006, charged with all six Yankees runs.
Hughes will be out for his fourth consecutive win after hitting a bit of a bump in mid-May. The New York righty has beaten the Indians once and Orioles twice in his last three starts, so he's familiar with weak lineups like the one Houston will send out on Sunday.
It will be the first time Hughes has faced the Astros in his career, with Jason Michaels (0-for-2) the only Houston hitter with any experience against him.
Ted Barrett is in line to call the balls and strikes. All 14 of his plate assignments for 2010 have seen the home team favored and the home fans going happy nine times. The 'over' has a slight 7-5-2 overall edge, with games in the 8½-10 range level at 4-4-1.
Bronx weather calls for partly cloudy skies and a 30 percent chance of a rogue thunderstorm. A muggy 80ºF is forecast for the 1:05 p.m. first pitch with ENE winds at 5-10 mph (in from left-center to the 1B on deck circle).
Both teams take a day off on Monday before continuing their interleague schedules. The Yankees remain in New York to meet the Phillies in a rematch of the 2009 World Series. The series opener will match up two of the biggest names on the mound when Roy Halladay (8-5, 1.96) starts for the Phils against the Yanks' C.C. Sabathia (7-6, 4.01).
Houston finishes up a 10-game road trip in Kansas City with three games starting Tuesday. Astros right-hander Felipe Paulino (4-8, 3.82) is scheduled to face the Royals Kyle Davies (6-6, 5.48) in Game 1.
NOTE: The W-L records shown for starting pitchers are their team's W-L mark when they started games in the 2010 season. Statistical sources for this article were Retrosheet.org, Baseball-Reference.com, ESPN.com and, of course, S-BEE-R-dot-com.
