Masahiro Tanaka (8-4, 3.84 ERA) and the New York Yankees (61-48) meet Marco Estrada (9-6, 3.40 ERA) and the Toronto Blue Jays (60-52) in the last of a three-game division series at Yankee Stadium. The Blue Jays won the last game 6-0, extending a seven-game winning streak. The game starts at 1:05 p.m. ET on Sunday, Aug. 9 and will air on YES and RSN.
In his most recent outing, Tanaka pitched 6.0 innings, allowing three runs, striking out three and walking one in a 13-3 victory over the Red Sox. Alex Rodriguez (.278, 64 Rs, 24 HRs, 63 RBIs, 1 SB) went 1 for 4 yesterday. The Blue Jays were victorious over the Twins 3-1 the last time Estrada pitched. He went 6.2 innings, allowing one run, striking out five and walking two. Josh Donaldson (.295, 81 Rs, 30 HRs, 82 RBIs, 4 SBs) went 1 for 3 yesterday with one run.
New York is a -133 favorite in this game and the Over/Under (O/U) is set at eight runs. The Yankees perform well as a favorite with a 38-25 record and have an overall money line of +339. They have impressive records of 17-10 as the favorite and 26-19 SU within their division. The Yankees have one of the most prolific home offenses in the entire AL, averaging 5.3 runs per game. The Yankees rank third in the AL in hits at home with 9.3 per game.
Moving on to the away team, the Blue Jays come into this game in an interesting position. They have won more than 60 percent of games played as the underdog (17-28) but have a negative money line (+16). Over the last 10 games, they were unbeaten as the underdog with a perfect 1-0 record and 9-1 SU. The Blue Jays are the number one overall scoring offense in the AL, averaging 5.3 runs per game so far.
The Blue Jays have gotten the best of the Yankees in head-to-head matchups this season, going 6-2. This game will feature Estrada (RHP) on the mound against the Yankees, who have a 40-35 record when they take on a right-handed starter. Taking the hill against the Blue Jays will be the right-hander Tanaka. They sport a 44-41 record against righties.
Predictions: SU Winner – Tor, O/U – Over
Notes
After last game’s shutout win against the Toronto, the Yankees now have one shutout this season. The Blue Jays have been shut out in four games this season.
Having scored zero runs in their last game, the Yankees are going to have to up their game if they want to win this matchup. The Blue Jays have a 6-0 record in games where opponents scored that many runs.
When they are outhit, the Blue Jays are 9-41. The Yankees have an 11-35 record when opponents outhit them.
Both falling in the top five of the league based on total home runs this season, New York ranks third with 147 homers and Toronto is second with 149.
New York and Toronto both rank in the top five of the league in hits. New York sits at third with 8.93 hits per game and Toronto ranks fourth with 8.90.
Toronto tops the league for its on-base plus slugging percentage of .782 this season. New York ranks in the top five at fourth with an OPS of .767.
The Blue Jays are 34-37 when they allow at least one home run. The Yankees perform similarly when they allow one or more homers with a 31-37 record.
