One of the best rivalries in baseball gets renewed this weekend in the Bronx, New York when the home town Yankees welcome the Boston Red Sox. The American League East rivals are heading in different directions this year.
The Yankees made the playoffs a year ago and had high expectations coming into the 2016 season but have hovered around the .500 mark all season and find themselves 7.5 games behind the first place Orioles in the American League East. The next two weeks are pivotal for New York, they either make a move or start making trades for the future.
After missing the playoffs last year, Boston is back to playing high level baseball and trails Baltimore by two games. There hopes for a 2016 playoff run hinge on their starting pitchers, who rank near the bottom of the league. Look for Red Sox GM Dave Dombrowski to be busy before the trade deadline, He knows his team needs to acquire another starter or two and one thing about Dombrowski, he’s not afraid to pull the trigger and make a trade. He started the process early by picking up utility player Aaron Hill and reliever Brad Ziegler and he’s just getting started. Look for Boston to be very active.
ODDS ANALYSIS/INFO
Boston is 49-38 on the year, 19-18 on the road and 19-19 against American League East competition.
The Yankees are .500 0n the year, 44 wins and 44 losses. Their home record is 23-18 but have struggled versus teams from their own division, going 10-17.
Boston and New York have met six times this year with the Red Sox winning four of the six.
TV Coverage: ESPN at 8:05 p.m., ET
PROBABLE PITCHERS
DAVID PRICE 9-6, 4.34
Price came over in the off season as a free agent to be the Red Sox ace. It’s time for the lefty to start pitching like it and if his last two starts are any indication, he is well on his way. He allowed four hits and one walk while striking out 10 over eight scoreless in Boston's 4-0 win over Tampa Bay in his last outing. It was the third straight game in which Price struck out at least 10 opposing batters. Price leads the American League in strikeouts and is second in strikeout-to-walk ratio.
MASAHIRO TANAKA 6-2, 3.23
Tanaka started the year on the DL and got off to a slow start but he knows how to win games and always keeps his club in the game. Costly errors and lack of run support have made it hard on the Japanese hurler. He lasted just 4.2 innings in his last start, allowing seven runs on 10 hits and two walks while striking out five, but escaped with a no-decision in an 11-7 win over the Indians. If the Yankees intend on making a push for the playoffs, Tanaka has to be near perfect the rest of the way, starting Sunday night against the Red Sox.
SPOTLIGHT PLAYER
DIDI GREGORIUS - SS
One of the few bright spots for the Yankees this year is shortstop Didi Gregorius. He plays solid defense and recently has been on a power terror homering in four of his last eight games bringing his total to 11 on the year. Gregorius replaced legend Derek Jeter at shortstop for the New York team, not an easy thing to do, but has done a great job and gives the Yankees hope for the future.
THE PICK
Great pitching matchup, live on ESPN, two bitter rivals, wow, sounds like a great game to watch and wager on. Boston will be a slight favorite with a game total of around 8 runs. David Price puts the Red Sox on his back and sends the faithful Yankee fans home with another disappointing loss.
MLB ODDS: Boston Red Sox 5, New York Yankees 3
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