Happy weekend to everyone. We are back at it with more analysis for another full Saturday of Major League Baseball. Our focus today will be on a couple of nightcaps that are sure to get plenty of attention. Grab your scorecards, popcorn, and peanuts, it’s time for Diamond Picks!
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Season Record: 17-8
Boston Red Sox at New York Yankees, 7:15 EDT
The Bronx bombers split their recent series with the Rays two games apiece. They continue to be slightly better at home (17-14) as opposed to the road (14-13), despite last night’s loss. Dealing with injuries continues to be a reoccurring theme with the storied franchise. Giancarlo Stanton is being eased back with his latest ailment (quadriceps). Other key contributors from the lineup on the shelf include Aaron Hicks and Luke Voit. Gio Urshela and DJ LeMahieu will be counted on for production to add steady production until the lineup gets back to full health
As for right fielder Aaron Judge, he continues to do Aaron Judge-like things. He has paced the team to the tune of a .286 batting average over the course of his previous 16 games heading into the weekend. Jameson Taillon will be slotted as the Yankees starter for tonight. His last two starts have been very strong. He has allowed just three earned runs while striking out nine batters over 10 innings. He will look to continue improving on his season-long 5.10 ERA.
The BoSox rankings over the last 10 for runs scored is off line with how the team has performed on the season as a whole. Similar to the Yankees, they have been treading water at 5-5 in recent games. Boston will turn to Eduardo Rodriguez, who has been roughed up in recent outings. His last five starts have amounted to a nasty 7.30 ERA. The Yankees will look to create offense in the early going before things turn over to Boston’s very capable bullpen. As of this writing, they own a 10th-best ERA of 3.72 with a 3.64 FIP.
This may be the toughest game of the day to pick a side. Both teams are in a funk offensively, but Rodriguez and Taillon have been hit around at various times so we are likely to get a decent amount of runs. My lean is towards the Red Sox at plus money (+110), and my official play will be to take the over.
Diamond Pick: Over 9.5 -110
Chicago Cubs at San Francisco Giants, 7:15 EDT
Don’t get me wrong, I love how the Cubbies are playing right now. They are showing us that they are for real this season, but so are the Giants. As of Friday, San Francisco owns a 16-8 record at Oracle Park and will turn to Kevin Gausman who has been outstanding this season. He ranks fourth in ERA (1.40), fifth in WHIP (0.81), and in the top 10 in wins with six.
The upstart Cubs will hand the ball over to Kohl Stewart who will be filling in for Trevor Williams due to injury. Stewart has a limited sample of starts under his belt over his three-year career, two of which were for the Minnesota Twins. He has compiled a 4.43 ERA over seven appearances. At first glance, based on his 36 strikeouts over 67 innings he profiles more to a pitch to contact type.
The Giants continue to rely on the long ball to pace the offense. They have 79 taters on the season but rank 19th with a .232 average. Both teams have performed really well of late, but the Giants will be aided by having Gausman on the bump. He will also get the advantage of getting backed by an offense that has averaged almost six runs per game since May 23.
Diamond Pick: San Francisco Giants -185 money line
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