CC Sabathia (4-9, 5.27 ERA) and the New York Yankees (77-60) meet Ubaldo Jimenez (10-9, 4.24 ERA) and the Baltimore Orioles (66-72) in the last of a three-game division series at Yankee Stadium. The Orioles won the last game 2-1 and the series is currently tied 1-1. The game starts at 7:05 p.m. ET on Wednesday, Sep. 9 and will air on YES and MASN.
In his last start, Sabathia pitched 2.2 innings, allowing two runs, striking out one and walking four in a 4-3 loss to the Indians. Alex Rodriguez (.258, 75 Rs, 30 HRs, 78 RBIs, 3 SBs) played well again yesterday, going 2 for 4 with one run, one home run, and one RBI. The Orioles were victorious over the Blue Jays 10-2 the last time Jimenez pitched. He went 5.2 innings, giving up one, striking out four and walking six. Chris Davis (.257, 81 Rs, 41 HRs, 102 RBIs, 2 SBs) went 1 for 3 yesterday with one run, one home run, and one RBI.
New York, a -128 favorite, will look to capitalize at home against Baltimore. The Over/Under (O/U) for the matchup is eight runs. The Yankees have a winning record of 51-31 when playing as the favorite and an overall money line of +576. Over the last 10 games, they have a very good record when playing as the favorite (7-1). New York has averaged 7.8 runs per game over the last 10 games, higher than its season average of 4.9. They have been very patient at the plate, ranking second in the AL with an average of 3.4 walks per game. Turning to the pitching staff, an area where the Yankees are particularly strong is striking batters out, where they average 8.4 K’s per game.
Moving on to the away team, the Orioles come into this game with a weak win percentage of .381 when playing as the underdog (24-39) and an overall money line of -1,216. They have played poorly as the underdog as of late. They managed a 1-6 record when playing as the underdog and an SU record of 2-8. The last 10 games have really brought the worst out of the Baltimore pitchers. They allowed 6.2 runs per game during that span, which is higher than their season average of 4.2.
The Yankees have gotten the best of the Orioles in head-to-head matchups this season, going 9-6. The Yankees will take on a right-hander (Jimenez) in this game and have a 53-43 record against right-handed starting pitchers this season. Taking the hill against the Orioles will be the left-hander Sabathia. They sport a 17-18 record against southpaws.
Predictions: SU Winner – NYY, O/U – Over
Notes
The Orioles won their last game by a one-run margin. In games decided by one run, the Yankees are 21-22. The Orioles are 18-24 in close games this season.
When leading after 7 innings, Baltimore is 24-23, while New York is 33-34.
Having scored zero runs in their last game, the Orioles are going to have to up their game if they want to win this matchup. The Yankees have a 2-0 record in games where opponents scored that many runs.
When they are outhit, the Orioles are 11-53. The Yankees have a 17-46 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 185 homers and Baltimore is fourth with 181.
Ranking 11th, Baltimore is in the top half of the league in hits, notching 8.50 per game. New York ranks in the top five at fifth with 8.78.
Ranking 12th, Baltimore is in the top half of the league for its on-base plus slugging percentage (.728). New York ranks in the top five at third with an OPS of .759.
The Orioles are 37-52 when they allow at least one home run. The Yankees perform similarly when they allow one or more homers with a 40-45 record.
