Media by Associated Press – New York Yankees starting pitcher Frankie Montas throws to a Tampa Bay Rays batter during the first inning of a baseball game Sunday, Sept. 4, 2022, in St. Petersburg, Fla. (AP Photo/Scott Audette)
With the NFL season kicking off and College Football rolling into Week 2, Major League Baseball has some big series this weekend with playoff implications.
The top two teams in the AL East, AL Central, and NL West face each other, plus there is a very interesting inter-league series between likely playoff teams.
For this article, we are going to skip the San Diego Padres hosting the Los Angeles Dodgers for the weekend. The Dodgers have a 19-game lead over the Padres in the NL West, and they are 10-3 against San Diego this season. The other three series of potential playoff teams are way more intriguing.
Battle for the AL East
This race was supposed to be over months ago. However, the New York Yankees collapsed in the second half, and their lead dwindled from 15.5 games on July 8 to 4.5 games on September 9. Tampa Bay is 21-9 in their last 30, while the Yankees are 13-17 heading into this weekend series at Yankee Stadium.
The Yankees send Frankie Montas (5-11, 3.79) against Tampa’s Drew Rasmussen (9-4, 2.70) on Friday night. Saturday afternoon will be Yankees RHP Jameson Taillon (12-4, 3.95) against Rays RHP Corey Kluber (10-7, 4.00). Neither team has announced a starter for Sunday afternoon’s finale.
The Yankees lead the season series 9-7, but Tampa Bay is 4-2 since the All-Star break. The Rays could end the weekend just 1.5 games back, and the teams do not meet again in the regular season.
Also, keep an eye on Yankees slugger Aaron Judge. He enters the weekend with 55 home runs, four in the last week as he chases Roger Maris’ team and American League record of 61. He has six home runs against Rays pitching on the season, including two last week.
AL Central Race is On
The AL Central race is a three-team race, and two of those squads go head-to-head this weekend as the Minnesota Twins host the Cleveland Guardians. Cleveland is 1.5 games up on both Minnesota and the Chicago White Sox. Chicago will be in Oakland all weekend, facing the team with the least wins in the AL while the other two battle it out at Target Field.
Friday’s game will be on Apple TV as the Guardians send Cal Quantrill (11-5, 3.55) to the mound against Twins RHP Dylan Bundy (8-6, 4.34). Saturday on FOX, the Twins have Chris Archer (2-7, 4.47) against Cleveland RHP Triston McKenzie (9-11, 3.19). Shane Bieber (9-8, 2.96) gets the start for the Guardians on Sunday against a TBA starter for Minnesota.
Cleveland leads the season series 6-5, and the teams have a 5-game series in Ohio next weekend. Both teams have struggled in September with identical 2-5 records. The Twins could end the weekend in the first place, or the teams could open the door for the White Sox to break through.
Inter-league Series
The inter-league series this weekend is a very intriguing one as the Atlanta Braves travel 2600 miles to face the Seattle Mariners. While these teams haven’t met since 2017, the Braves are a half-game out in the NL East, and Seattle is five games up on Baltimore for a AL Wild Card spot.
The series starts on Apple TV Friday night as Atlanta sends veteran RHP Charlie Morton (7-5, 4.01) to the mound against Mariners LHP Robbie Ray (12-8, 3.45). The Braves send NL Cy Young contender Max Fried (13-5, 2.48) to the mound on Saturday against Mariners rookie George Kirby (6-3, 3.15). Atlanta hasn’t announced Sunday’s starter, while the Mariners will have LHP Marco Gonzales (10-13, 3.98) on the mound.
The Braves are 22-8 in their last 30 games as they have chased down the NY Mets in the division. Seattle hasn’t made much headway against Houston in the AL West, but a 20-10 record in their last 30 games has resulted in a solid Wild Card spot.
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