The New York Yankees and Cleveland Guardians will renew their rivalry from last season’s ALCS on Monday night.
New York – which is in first place in the AL East through 22 games – is a slight favorite at home with Clarke Schmidt set to take the mound against Guardians youngster Gavin Williams.
Cleveland is just 0.5 games out of first in the AL Central, and it’s been red hot as of late, winning three straight games and seven of its last 10 heading into this matchup.
New York closed out a series with Tampa Bay with a win on Sunday, but can it end this mini Guardians’ win streak?
Here’s a look at the odds, players to watch in the prop market and my prediction for Monday’s matchup.
Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook.
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Yankees Best MLB Prop Bet
Earlier today, I shared in SI Betting’s best home run picks – Daily Dinger – why Aaron Judge is worth a look on Monday night:
This season, Judge already has seven home runs, and he’s hitting a ridiculous .390/.495/.707 for the first-place Yankees.
On Monday, Judge faces Cleveland Guardians righty Gavin Williams, who has allowed a few homers already this season and allowed Judge to take him deep once in two matchups against him.
Judge only has one homer over the last two weeks, so I think this is a little bit of a buy-low spot, especially since the Guardians bullpen has also been prone to giving up the long ball, allowing eight this season.
These two teams are pretty even when it comes to pitching, as they both rank in the top 10 in MLB in bullpen ERA and both of these starters have middling numbers.
Schmidt has only made one start from New York after he missed the beginning of the season with an injury, so there isn’t much to take away from his outings. Williams, on the other hand, has a 4.58 ERA, 1.32 WHIP and has given up at least two runs in three of his four outings.
When it comes to offenses, the Yankees have a huge advantage, as they rank No. 1 in MLB in OPS while the Guardians are just 16th.
New York has also done a solid job on the road this season, winning six of 10 games. I’ll back the Yanks as slight favorites on Monday.
Pick: Yankees Moneyline (-120 at DraftKings)
Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.
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