New York Yankees Vs. Cleveland Guardians (7/1/22) Starting Lineup, Betting Odds, Prediction

New York is 55-20 through their first 75 games of the season, first place in the American League East, -1600 to win the division; they’ve won the AL East once since 2013. The Yankees are +400 to win their first World Series since 2009 when they beat the Philadelphia Phillies; New York has won a major league record 27 World Series titles. 

The Guardians are 37-34 through 71 games in 2022, second place in the American League Central.  They’re +260 to win the division; they last won the division in 2018.  Cleveland has made the playoffs five times since 2012.  The Guardians are +8000 to win the World Series; the last championship the franchise won was in 1948. 

New York Yankees Vs. Cleveland Guardians Betting Odds

The Yankees are 40-12 in their last 52 during game one of a series.  Over is 12-3 in New York’s last 15 during game one of a series.  The Yankees are 46-15 in their last 61 vs. American League Central.  Over is 3-0-1 in New York’s last four vs. American League Central opponents.  Over is 4-1 in the last 5 meetings the Yankees and Guardians.  Cleveland is 7-2 in their last nine during game one of a series.  Over is 6-2 in the Guardians last eight during game one of a series.  Cleveland is 1-4 in their last five vs. American League East.  Over is 9-3 in the Guardians last 12 vs. American League East.

New York Yankees Starting Lineup

G. Cole R
6-2 2.99 ERA

1B D.J. LeMahieu R
CF A. Judge R
DH A. Rizzo L
RF G. Stanton R
3B J. Donaldson R
2B G. Torres R
LF A. Hicks S
SS I. Kiner-Falefa R
C J. Trevino R

New York Yankees Vs. Aaron Civale (R)

In the 2021 season, Aaron Judge played in 148 games, belting 39 home runs, driving in 98 runs with an OPS of .916.  This season he leads the majors in home runs (29) and total bases (180).  Additionally, he’s third in slugging percentage (.636) and fourth in OPS (1.001) while his 59 runs batted in are fourth in MLB.  The Yankees number 99 leads the club with a .289 batting average.  Judge is the favorite to win the 2022 American League MVP at -135. 

Giancarlo Stanton hit .273, slamming 35 home runs and driving in 97 runs in 2021.  In his 13^th season, he has 18 home runs (third on the club), 49 runs driven in, 112 total bases with a .844 OPS in 2022.  He’s slugging .514 with 29 runs scored this year.   

Anthony Rizzo has slammed 20 home runs this season (second on New York) while knocking in 50 runs with 130 total bases.  Playing in his first full season with the Yankees, the first baseman has an OPS of .826 with a .492 slugging percentage in 2022. 

Gleyber Torres has hit 13 home runs and driven in 32 runs this season for New York.  The second baseman is hitting .250 with 111 total bases and a .487 slugging percentage.  DJ LeMahieu has hit .300 since joining the Yankees in 2019.  This season, he’s hitting .257 with seven home runs, 31 runs driven in, 96 total bases with an OPS of .753.  Additionally, LeMahieu has scored 39 runs and drawn 34 walks this campaign

Catcher Jose Trevino has been a pleasant surprise for the Yankees this season hitting .271 with six home runs and 24 runs batted in.  

Aaron Civale is 2-4 in nine starts with an ERA of 7.20 this season.  The right-hander has thrown 40 innings in 2022, striking out 39 batters, allowing 32 runs with a 1.600 WHIP.  Civale has won 21 games in his four-year big-league career with an ERA of 4.23 in 296 innings.

Cleveland Guardians Starting Lineup

A. Civale R
2-4 7.20 ERA

LF S. Kwan L
SS A. Rosario R
3B J. Ramirez S
1B J. Naylor L
DH F. Reyes R
2B A. Gimenez L
RF O. Gonzalez R
C L. Maile R
CF M. Straw R

Cleveland Guardians Vs. Gerrit Cole (R)

Jose Ramirez is +1100 to win the American League MVP as he’s been one of the best players in baseball this season.  The third baseman is hitting .297 with 25 doubles, four triples, 16 home runs and 63 runs driven in.  Ramirez has 160 total bases, a .602 slugging percentage, and an OPS of .982 in 2022.  He’s the Guardians most dangerous hitter and can carry a team to victory on his own.

Josh Naylor is having a solid season for Cleveland.  The first baseman is batting .271 with 13 doubles, nine home runs, 41 runs driven in (second on the team) while accumulating 89 total bases.   Naylor is slugging .492 with an OPS of .820 in over 180 at-bats this year.  Andres Gimenez leads the Guardians in hitting in 2022 with a .309 batting average. He’s hit 10 doubles, two triples, eight home runs and knocked in 35 runs this season.  He has 102 total bases with an OPS of .847 while slugging .493 in 2022.  Amed Rosario is hitting .293 this season for the Guardians.  The former New York Met prospect has 12 doubles, five triples, two home runs, 22 runs batted in with 107 total bases this year.

Outfielder Steven Kwan has been a surprise for Cleveland this season, batting .288 in over 200 at-bats.  The 24-year-old has hit eight doubles, three triples, a home run, 18 runs driven in with 76 total bases in 2022.

Gerrit Cole is 6-2 in 15 starts with an ERA of 2.99 in 2022.  The four-time All-Star has pitched 87 1/3 innings, striking out 111 batters while allowing 29 runs with a WHIP of 1.008 this season.  In his third season with the Yankees, he’s 29-13 with an ERA of 3.08 and 448 strikeouts.

New York Yankees Vs. Cleveland Guardians Picks & Prediction

Under is 4-1-1 in New York’s last six overall.  The Yankees are averaging 5.03 runs per nine innings, second overall in MLB.  They have a team batting average of .239, 18^th in the league, and their OPS is .757, second in baseball.  New York’s pitching staff is allowing 3.05 runs per nine innings, first in MLB with opponents’ batting .213 with an OPS of .618 against the club, first in the big leagues in both categories.  The Yankees are 5-2 in their last seven road games vs. a team with a winning record.

Over is 5-2 in the Guardians last seven games vs. a right-handed starter.  Cleveland is averaging 4.48 runs per nine innings, 16^th in Major League Baseball. They have a team batting average of .248, 10^th in the league, and their OPS is .692, 20^th in all of MLB.  The Guardians’ pitching staff is allowing 4.31 runs per nine innings, 15^th in the league with opponents’ batting .240 against the team, 16^th in MLB.  Cleveland is 1-5 in their last six home games vs. a right-handed starter. 

I like the Yankees in this game on the strength of their hitting and starting pitcher Gerrit Cole who’s only lost two games and is fourth in the majors in strikeouts in 2022.  New York wins this contest, covering the 1.5 run spread as the teams combine for under eight runs.