The New York Yankees did what they had to do on Tuesday, getting the 7-2 win over the Baltimore Orioles as -327 favorites in a Gerrit Cole start.
The victory was no sure thing, as the Yankees had dropped two of three to Baltimore in the Bronx at the beginning of the month. Now NYY needs to keep the momentum going, coming into Wednesday’s meeting as -192 favorites.
Must Have Series for New York
The Yankees could have been prey to an upset loss on Tuesday, as they lost two of three to the Mets in the Subway Series over the weekend, had a makeup game with the Twins on Monday, and Cole had even left his last start early after tweaking his hamstring. That was not the case, though, as Cole was efficient with five innings of the 1-run ball while New York hit five HRs as a team.
Now the big task is to keep the momentum going as New York still sits in a tie with Boston and Toronto for the two AL wild-card spots. The Mariners and A’s are both within 3-1/2 games as well, so things are pretty jumbled near the top. Another power surge like Tuesday wouldn’t hurt, as DJ LeMahieu, Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, Luke Voit, and Joey Gallo all had home runs for New York.
Nestor Cortes, Jr. (2-2, 2.70 ERA) tries to follow up a solid outing from Cole when he takes the hill on Wednesday. The left-hander has pitched well, allowing 2 ER or less in five of seven starts since August 1st. That includes 5.2 IP of 1-run ball in a 4-3 win over Baltimore on September 3rdd as -254 favorites.
Baltimore Short on Pitching Lately
You know the Orioles’ pitching has struggled lately when giving up seven runs, and 5 HR on Tuesday is considered a decent outing. That’s because Baltimore was absolutely exploited over the three games prior against Toronto, losing 11-2, 11-10, and then 22-7.
A team burns up a lot of relievers, giving up 44 runs in three games, but Baltimore did have Monday off, which helped the bullpen recharge a bit. Alexander Wells went just four innings in Tuesday’s loss, though, which puts more pressure on John Means in Wednesday night’s contest. Baltimore has lost seven straight Means starts, even though he hasn’t pitched badly, giving up 2 ER in three straight outings.
The Orioles offense couldn’t get much going against Cortes, Jr. the last time their paths crossed on September 3rd. That looks like a trend that will continue, as Baltimore is just 4 for 24 (.167) as a team vs. the New York left-hander. Trey Mancini has two of those hits, with one of them leaving the yard.
Yankees at Orioles Pick
It doesn’t take a ton of insight to see that the Orioles pitching staff is getting rocked lately.
Baltimore has now allowed 6+ runs in 6 of their last eight games, which seems like it will continue this whole series against the Yankees. New York blasted five HRs on Tuesday – can they top that number on Wednesday?
Pick: Yankees -1.5 (-125)
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