Chicago Cubs at New York Yankees Betting Preview
After a marathon game on Friday, the Chicago Cubs (23-34) and New York Yankees 42-16) will square off for the second of a three-game series on Saturday. New York will host this one at Yankee Stadium.
Friday night’s game went 13 innings before Jose Trevino finally hit a walk-off single. In 44 at bats, the Yankees managed just six hits and left an astonishing 35 runners on base. Josh Donaldson was the only player who even reached two hits.
On the mound, Luis Severino was brilliant, going six innings and allowing just one run while striking out 10. The bullpen pitched seven scoreless innings.
For the Cubs, they scored their lone run in the fifth inning, a solo home run by Jason Heyward. Aside from that, the Cubs had nine total hits and left 30 on base.
Wade Miley pitched three scoreless innings in his return from the injured list, but that taxed the bullpen, which pitched 9.2 innings.
The Yankees are heavy favorites Saturday. They are -260 to win while the Cubs’ moneyline sits at +215. The runline features Chicago +1.5 (+108), and the over/under for total runs is nine.
Cubs Trying To Stay Relevant In Division
At 23-34, it has been a rough start for the Chicago Cubs. Still entering play on Saturday, they sit just nine games back in the division. While they have three teams ahead of them, the Cubs will look to stay relevant in the NL Central while also trying to improve on their 12-14 road record.
Taking the ball for the Cubs Saturday will be 28-year-old Matt Swarmer. He will be making just his third career appearance. In his first two games, he is 1-0 with a 1.50 ERA, 0.83 WHIP, and has 11 strikeouts in 12 innings of work.
In his last start, he picked up the win over the Cardinals after going six innings, allowing one run on two hits and striking out five.
Offensively, the Cubs have been led by Willson Contreras. The catcher is a likely trade candidate this season as he is hitting .273/.396/.517 with ten home runs, 23 runs batted in, 35 runs scored, and two stolen bases.
Patrick Wisdom has also hit well early on. Despite hitting just .219/.307/.469, he leads the team in both home runs (12) and runs batted in (31).
Yankees Are The Best Team In Baseball
With a .724 winning percentage, the New York Yankees not only have the best record in the American League, but they have the best record in all of baseball. Having won nine of their last ten games, they will try to keep putting pressure on the rest of the AL East, on which they currently have a 7.5-game lead on.
Taking the mound Saturday will be lefty Jordan Montgomery. In 11 games, he is 1-1 with a 3.02 ERA and 1.01 WHIP, and he has 46 strikeouts in 59.2 innings of work.
He took a no-decision in his last time out against the Detroit Tigers. In that contest, he went 6.1 innings, allowing two earned runs on five hits. In his last 19.1 innings (three starts), he has allowed a combined five earned runs.
Offensively, Aaron Judge continues to mash the ball. He is hitting .308/.386/.664 with 22 home runs, 45 runs batted in, and 48 runs scored. He leads the team in all three of those categories.
This matchup is also interesting as it is a bit of a homecoming for Anthony Rizzo. The longtime Cub is currently hitting .215/.320/.474 with 14 home runs, 39 runs batted in, and 33 runs scored.
Take The Yankees To Win And Cover
While the Cubs were able to keep it close on Friday, it is hard to see them being able to repeat that performance Saturday. Not only are the Cubs 1-5 in their last six games, but they are 0-6 in their last six games at Yankee Stadium.
Especially with the Cubs’ bullpen having to account for ten innings Friday, they could really use a long outing from Matt Swarmer. The problem, though, is that it is a lot to ask a rookie against the best offense in baseball.
At the end of the day, the Yankees’ offense will just be too much for Chicago in this one. Take New York to not only win but to cover the -1.5 runline (-130) as well.
