Masahiro Tanaka (3-1, 2.76 ERA) and the New York Yankees (32-25) square off against Max Scherzer (6-4, 1.85 ERA) and the Washington Nationals (30-27) in a game that has the potential to be low scoring. This is the first of a two-game series at Yankee Stadium. The Yankees come into this series riding a six-game winning streak. Action begins at 7:05 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Jun. 9 and can be seen on MASN and YES.
Tanaka pitched 7.0 innings in his last outing, surrendering one run and striking out nine in a 3-1 win over the Mariners. Brett Gardner (.278, 39 Rs, 5 HRs, 26 RBIs, 14 SBs) went 1 for 4 Sunday with one run, one home run, and three RBIs. Against the Yankees, Scherzer is 4-2 with a 3.79 ERA, 1.51 WHIP, and 36 strikeouts. Denard Span (.291, 23 Rs, 5 HRs, 17 RBIs, 3 SBs) went 1 for 4 Sunday.
Washington is a slim -110 favorite over New York. According to the oddsmakers, the Over/Under (O/U) is currently seven runs. The Yankees have an overall money line of +465 and a record as the underdog of 15-14. Against the NL, they are winless as the underdog (0-2), but have an SU record of 2-3. The Yankees have no trouble scoring as they rank second in the AL in home offense with 5.3 runs per game. The Yankees are one of the best in the MLB in terms of home runs with 74. New York’s pitchers fall apart when National League teams are on the field. Its average runs allowed per game rises to 4.8 against NL teams, compared to its 4.1 season average. Opponents have consistently been struck out by the Yankees, who rank second in the AL in strikeouts per game with 8.7.
In games where it is the favorite, Washington has a 26-20 record and an overall money line of -388. They played poorly as the favorite over their last 10 games with a 2-7 record, and a 2-8 record SU. Offensively, they average four runs per game on the road, which is second in the NL. The Nationals allow 4.3 runs per game, but does worse whenever an AL opponent is on the schedule. They bring that runs allowed average up to 5.6 against teams from the AL.
The Nationals have the edge in the season series, 2-0. The Yankees have a 23-19 record against right-handed starting pitchers on the year, which is what they’ll be facing when Scherzer takes the mound. Tanaka (RHP) will be on the hill against the Nationals, who have a 21-23 record against right-handed starting pitchers.
Predictions: SU Winner – NYY, O/U – Over
Notes
The Nationals are 3-1 in games that go into extra innings. Meanwhile, the Yankees are 1-3 in such matchups.
The Nationals managed to give up five walks in their last game. They’ll have to pick it up against the Yankees who are heading in with a 13-1 record against opponents who give up that many walks or more.
When they are outhit, the Nationals are 6-25. The Yankees have a 6-18 record when opponents outhit them.
Washington ranks in the top half of the league at 11th when it comes to home runs, hitting 59 this season. New York ranks in the top five at second with 74.
New York and Washington both rank in the top 10 of the league in hits. New York sits at seventh with 8.53 hits per game and Washington ranks 10th with 8.42.
Ranking 11th, Washington is in the top half of the league for its on-base plus slugging percentage (.722). New York ranks in the top 10 at sixth with an OPS of .735.
When the Nationals allow at least one home run, they are 9-15. When the Yankees allow one or more homers, they have a 16-19 record.
