With the best record in baseball, the New York Yankees (28-10) return home to host the Chicago White Sox (19-19) for a three-game weekend series. The Yankees took three-of-four between the teams last weekend, and they are 9-2 in the last 11 games. The series opener is set for 7:05 p.m. ET at Yankee Stadium on Friday, airing on Amazon Prime Video.
The Yankees send LHP Nestor Cortes (2-1, 1.35) to the mound in the opener against Chicago LHP Dallas Keuchel (2-3, 5.54). These teams play all seven games of the season series in a ten-day span, with New York leading 3-1. Last year the Yankees won the season series 5-1, including a three-game sweep at home.
White Sox Road Trip Continues
Chicago won a day game in Kansas City on Thursday and finished their series against the Royals at 3-2. They are 10-9 on the road this season and 6-4 against the AL East. The White Sox are 5-3 against left-handed pitchers.
The White Sox had 14 hits on Thursday, with Luis Robert going 3-for-4 with four RBI. He homered while the other 13 hits were singles, two each from Tim Andeson, Josh Harrison, and Andrew Vaughn. Anderson also stole two bases and drove in two runs in the comeback win.
Anderson (.346), Robert (.301), and Vaughn (.267) are the only White Sox batting above .240 on the season. Robert leads the team with six home runs, while Anderson, Vaughn, and Gavin Sheets all have four. Robert also has a team-best 17, while Anderson passed Jose Abreu on Thursday for 15 and the second-best tally on the team.
Keuchel’s last outing came at home against the Yankees on Saturday. He left with the lead after firing five shutout innings but took a no-decision while striking out three and allowing four hits. In his last two starts, Keuchel has allowed two runs in 11 innings of work.
Keuchel is 0-2 with two no-decisions in his last four starts against the Yankees, last beating them in 2017. Josh Donaldson and Giancarlo Stanton both have two homers off Keuchel in their careers, and Anthony Rizzo has one. Stanton is 6-for-11 while Aaron Judge is 5-for-13, and Gleyber Torres is 4-for-10.
Yankees Return Home After Rare Loss
The Yankees are 10-1 in their last 11 home games with three walk-off wins. They are 7-3 against left-handed pitching and 11-2 against the AL Central. New York is 14-4 overall at home, and they scored 32 runs in their series win at Chicago last weekend.
The Yankees lost at Baltimore on Thursday, getting walked off on a three-run homer. Stanton hit his 11th homer of the season and added a single to drive in two more. DJ LeMahieu and Isiah Kiner-Falefa also had two hits in the loss.
Aaron Judge has eight home runs this month and leads the Yankees with 14 on the season while batting .307. His 30 RBI trail Stanton by five, while Rizzo has driven in 24. Those three have a combined 35 home runs, and Stanton is batting .296.
Cortes was great against the White Sox on Sunday, allowing one run on three hits over eight innings in a win. He struck out seven and has 18 strikeouts in his last 15⅓ innings. Cortes also beat the White Sox last season with seven strikeouts and one run allowed over seven innings of work.
The only active players on Chicago’s roster with a home run off Cortes are Andrew Vaughn and Adam Engel. Anderson is 3-for-8 against the lefty while Jose Abreu is 2-for-7, and Yoan Moncada is 1-for-3. Robert and Harrison are both 0-for-6, and AJ Pollock is 0-for-4.
Betting Analysis
- Chicago White Sox +1.5 (-120) Moneyline +165
- New York Yankees -1.5 (+100) Moneyline -195
- Total Runs: 8.5 Over -110, Under -110
The Yankees put 32 runs on the board against Chicago pitching last weekend, and while they didn’t fare well against Keuchel, they knocked the bullpen around in all four games. Cortes has been fantastic against a White Sox lineup that normally slugs 70 points higher against lefties than righties.
Look for the Yankees to open another series with a win as they’ve done in nine straight series.
Betting Pick: Yankees -1.5 (+100)
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