MLB Odds: The New York Yankees host the Texas Rangers on Thursday in a matinee that can be seen on MLB Network. The Yankees will be favored in what could be a high scoring game. The Rangers are expected to go with Colby Lewis who has an ERA of more than six on the season while the Yankees should be going with Brandon McCarthy. Let’s look at the matchup and MLB predictions.
Probable Pitchers – Lewis vs. McCarthy
Colby Lewis actually pitched pretty well last time out against Toronto as he went five innings and allowed just two earned runs. Lewis is 6-7 on the season with a 6.37 ERA. Lewis pitched twice against the Yankees back in 2010 and he pitched pretty well as he allowed only three combined runs in the two starts.
Brandon McCarthy has been good since coming over from Arizona in a trade. His overall ERA on the season is still more than four but he has pitched really well in both of his starts with the Yankees as he allowed just one earned run against the Indians and only one run against the Reds. The Yankees won both of those starts. McCarthy faced the Rangers on a regular basis when he pitched for the A’s and he also faced them once as a member of the Diamondbacks. That start happened last season as he was shelled for six runs in just over two innings. His teams have lost five of his last seven starts when he faces the Rangers.
Series Notes
This is the finale of a four-game series between the teams. They had split their last ten meetings before Monday’s contest. Four of the last five had gone under the total. The Yankees lost two of three at home last year but it is hard to see the Rangers doing as well this time around as Texas is having a very poor season.
MLB Predictions
Even though Lewis has pitched better of late it is still hard to trust him on the road. We’ll go with the Yankees in this one and also look for the game to go over the total.