It has been a rocky season for the Detroit Tigers (34-32, -$91) who head to New York to take on the Yankees (35-30, $184) this weekend with the final game coming Sunday afternoon.
ODDS ANALYSIS
After an eight game losing streak saw the Tigers lose ground in the AL Central, Detroit has taken six of their last ten games, but has dropped two straight to the Cincinnati Reds as of Thursday.
On the other side, the Yankees currently sit second in the AL East, just a game behind the Tampa Bay Rays.
After topping the division for much of the year, the Yankees find themselves in a tightly matched division with many of the teams surging at the same time.
Unfortunately for New York, they’re not one of the surging teams, having dropped five of their last seven games and are now dealing with injuries to Mark Teixeira (neck) and Andrew Miller (forearm) in addition to missing Jacoby Ellsbury (knee).
PITCHING MATCHUP
This pitching matchup should be an interesting one with Nathan Eovaldi on the bump for the Yankees against Kyle Ryan, the likely starter for the Tigers.
Eovaldi has one of the fastest fastballs of any starter in the majors, but he needs to control it. He is currently fighting for his spot with each start now that Ivan Nova is on the mend.
The 25-year old righty is 5-2 with a 5.12 ERA and 1.649 WHIP in 70 1/3 innings pitched over 13 starts.
He did not even make it out of the first inning of his last start, allowing eight runs to the Marlins and seeing his ERA balloon by a whole run. Prior to that, however, Eovaldi had actually thrown a solid game, holding the Nationals to just three runs in seven innings.
On the other side, Ryan is even less established than Eovaldi, but has been pretty good in a couple chances.
The 23-year old southpaw is 1-1 with a 3.26 ERA and 1.138 WHIP in four games, two starts, over 19 1/3 innings of work.
In his last game, he allowed four runs in six and a third innings against the Reds, but prior to that had allowed just a three runs in 13 innings.
In the minors, Ryan has a combined 3.66 ERA and put up a 4.67 mark with five losses in nine starts at Triple-A this year.
QUOTE TO NOTE
Among other stories, a big one of the Yankees is A-Rod approaching 3,000 hits. When asked about it after the last game, he had this to say:
“Of course it’s always on your mind a little bit, but today was a huge win for us. We needed to get back on the saddle and get a win.”
LIVE/SITUATIONAL BETTING
The Yankees have surprised a lot of people this year and remain in the mix in the AL East thanks in part to an offense that has apparently found the fountain of youth.
The team ranks seventh in all of baseball with 292 runs scored and has gotten big years from Alex Rodriguez and Mark Teixeira. Tex is dealing with an injury, but should be back this weekend.
Overall, Teixeira leads the team with his .942 OPS and provides a huge thump in the heart of the order thanks to his 18 home runs and 48 RBIs. A-Rod, meanwhile, is second on the team in OPS at .884 and home runs with 12.
Another major contributor is Brian McCann. Behind the plate, the veteran has added 40 RBIs. While the team is getting lackluster production from the infield, the rest of the team has made up the difference.
For the Tigers, they, too, have a few holes in the order, but their biggest issue is that all the production and thump comes from the right-side. Against a flamethrower like Eovaldi, a lefty thumper would be helpful.
Nevertheless, the team should still get enough offense. First baseman Miguel Cabrera is healthy and back to the form that won him back-to-back MVP awards. He is currently hitting .342 with a 1.045 OPS and 15 home runs.
On top of Cabrera, the team also has Yoenis Cespedes (.827 OPS) and J.D. Martinez (.805 OPS) in the middle and Jose Iglesias (.383 OBP) and Ian Kinsler (.343 OBP) getting on base. Despite that, however, they have scored less than the Yankees this year.
PROP TALK
Keep an eye on both Cabrera and Cespedes. Both have the power to turn around anybody’s fastball and the faster it comes in, the quicker it goes out.
Neither have a home run in their careers against Eovaldi, but both have found some success in limited at bats. Cabrera is 3 for 6 while Cespedes is 3 for 9.
ANALYSIS AND PREDICTION
Neither team’s playing at the top of their games right now and neither pitcher has the track record to instill confidence in pulling out an easy win.
Head-to-head, the Yankees have taken three of four against the Tigers, providing a bit of confidence for them.
Detroit 6, New York 4
The MLB lines for this contest will first be released by BookMaker Sportsbook. Gamble on the game between every half inning with BookMaker’s live betting feature. Along with an adjusted in-game moneyline, you can wager on what will happen in the next at-bat or how many runs will be scored in the next inning. Live betting is the most exciting way to play!
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mobile device at BookMaker Sportsbook! You can wager on sporting events as they unfold on television with BookMaker’s live betting platform. Real-time spreads, totals, props and moneyline odds are all available by clicking here so start betting with BookMaker today! The ballgame pitting the Detroit Tigers versus the New York Yankees will commence Sunday, June 21, 2015, at 1:05 p.m. ET at Yankee Stadium.
