Guardians vs Yankees Odds & Picks: Cleveland’s Bats Look To Stay Hot In New York

The New York Yankees (7-6) host the Cleveland Guardians (7-5) in their series opener on Friday at Yankee Stadium. New York is coming off a series win over the Detroit Tigers while Cleveland is fresh off a three-game sweep of the Chicago White Sox. Which club will pick up its second straight series victory? Find out in our Guardians vs Yankees prediction.

Guardians vs Yankees Odds & Analysis

Sportsbook Odds

The Yankees opened as the home favorite at -163 on the moneyline with the Guardians at +153 on the road. The total was set at 8.5 runs with the UNDER going 6-1 in the Yankees’ last seven games and the OVER going 7-3 in the Guardians’ last 10 outings. Cleveland goes into the game with a 3-1 record in the last four meetings against New York – a potential nod to the visitors for your Guardians vs Yankees prediction.

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Starting Pitchers

Jameson Taillon (0-1) will get the ball for New York in the first game of this three-game set. Taillon pitched 4.2 innings and gave up three hits and two earned runs in his last outing against the Baltimore Orioles on April 16. The right-hander went 8-6 over 29 starts with a 4.30 ERA and a 1.21 WHIP last season.

Eli Morgan (1-0) is set to take the bump for Cleveland in his first start of the year. Morgan has made three relief appearances so far this season, most recently on April 17 against the San Francisco Giants when he gave up three hits and two earned runs in an inning of work. He went 5-7 over 18 starts in 2021 with a 5.34 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP.

Guardians Fresh Off Sweep Of White Sox

The Guardians won 6-3 on Thursday to seal a three-game sweep of the White Sox. Josh Naylor and Franmil Reyes each had two hits and two RBIs to lead the offense while Zach Plesac gave up seven hits and just one earned run over 6.2 innings to earn the win.

After losing their first two games of the season, Cleveland has gone 7-3 in its last 10 outings, scoring 6.7 runs per game over that span. The Guardians have already scored 10-plus runs four times this season, including a 17-3 stomping of the Kansas City Royals on April 10.

Yankees Shut Out For Third Time This Season

The Yankees dropped the final game of their series against the Tigers, losing 3-0 on Thursday. Robbie Grossman hit an RBI double in the third inning to give Detroit the only run it would need, while Austin Meadows hit a two-run double in the eighth to bolster the lead. Michael Pineda picked up the win for the Tigers, pitching five innings and giving up three hits, while Jordan Montgomery took the loss for the Yankees after giving up one earned run in six innings of work.

Offense has been a struggle for the Yankees, who have already been blanked three times this season. New York is averaging just 3.25 runs per game, ranked 25th in the majors.

Guardians vs Yankees Pick & Insights

Guardians: Keys To Victory

Cleveland owns the best offense in the majors at 5.64 runs per game, and that number has been even higher on the road at 7.50 runs. Jose Ramirez is already at 20 RBIs – tops in the big leagues – while he and teammate Josh Naylor own the two highest batting averages at .426 and .429, respectively. It’ll be hard for an offensively starved New York team to keep up with that firepower.

Yankees: Keys To Victory

While the Yankees have struggled offensively, they’ve at least been good at keeping their opponents off the board, holding them to just 2.83 runs per game – fourth best in baseball. Given their struggles at the plate, New York’s best chance at winning this game will be to try to mitigate the damage from Cleveland’s big bats, even if that means pitching around them.

Odds Shark’s Computer Guardians vs Yankees Prediction: Yankees ML (-200)