Can The Yankees Play Themselves Into First Place Again?

The New York Yankees will travel to Detroit for a three-game series over the weekend. During this series, MLB will hold “Player’s Weekend,” and the Yankees and Tigers will play in Williamsport, PA, for the MLB Little League Classic on Sunday. The first two games of this series will still be in Detroit and played in Comerica Park.

With that out of the way, the Yankees are currently tied with the Baltimore Orioles for first place in the AL East. On the flip side, the Tigers are 13.5 games out of the AL Central and 7.5 games out from an AL Wild Card spot.

Ultimately, only one team from the AL East can win the division. However, the Yankees are still in a great position to at least earn an MLB playoff spot.

Every series down the stretch is critical now.

• In Game 1 of this MLB matchup, the Yankees are -190 favorites, with the total stuck at 8.
• However, the Over 8 is juiced to -118.

Let’s review the Yankees vs Tigers Series Odds for the weekend.

Aaron Judge’s 300th Home Run

Aaron Judge hit his 300th home run for the New York Yankees in just 955 games. He became the fastest player in MLB history to reach this milestone and is becoming the best power hitter ever to play the game.

He’ll have to stay healthy and have a long career to pass someone like Barry Bonds (762 home runs). But for now, he’s on his way.

🚨 NO. 3️⃣0️⃣0️⃣ FOR AARON JUDGE 🚨 pic.twitter.com/8r8q5rj5vE

— MLB (@MLB) August 15, 2024

Trey Sweeny Jace Jung Called Up

The Detroit Tigers are getting younger and better at the same time. Detroit has called up top prospects Trey Sweeney and Jace Jung. Jung is the higher-ranked prospect of the two. However, both have been tremendous in the minors and deserve an opportunity with the big league club.

Jung has made 16 errors at third base. But he’s also hit very well this year. Jung will need to fix his mistakes in the field. Still, his bat is worth the call-up alone.

The Yankees vs Tigers Series Odds For Game 1:

RL: Yankees -1.5 (-114) ML: Yankees -190, O/U: 8 -118/-104

Yankees vs Tigers Series Preview

⚾ Game 1 ⚾

• Friday, 6:40 pm ET
• Gerrit Cole vs Brant Hurter

The Yankees will pitch Gerrit Cole in the first game of the series. Ultimately, he’s looked more like himself over the last few games. His ERA is stuck at 4.70. However, Cole has struck out 26.8% of batters over the previous month and has walked just 4.1%. He’s starting to get comfortable on the mound again.

Meanwhile, he’ll face a Detroit lineup with a .260 ISO and wOBA of .364 collectively over the last month. Kerry Carpenter has destroyed right-handed pitching since returning to the lineup. He’s hit a 1.000 ISO in nine plate appearances with a wOBA of .799. That won’t continue, but he’s been boiling since returning against righties.

Meanwhile, the Tigers haven’t confirmed a starter. All signs point to Brant Hurter making the start. Hurter is a left-handed pitcher who has held his first 32 batters to a .032 ISO and woBA of .200 with 65.2% of ground balls.

Hurter might not be able to go deeper than five innings. But he’s at least put together some really good stats from his time on the major league mound already.

Consider the Under 8 (-104) as one of our free MLB picks for today.

⚾ Game 2 ⚾

• Saturday, 1:10 pm ET
• Carlos Rodon vs Keider Montero

In the second game of the series, Carlos Rodon will get the ball. He’s a lefty pitcher who has struck out 32.3% of batters over the last month. In addition, Rodon has held his last 96 batters to a .258 wOBA and has averaged over 105 pitches per start throughout the previous month.

Still, Rodon has allowed 50.9% of fly balls and just 21.8% of ground balls over the last 30 days. He’s also walked 10.4% in that time. But the Tigers have plenty of batters who strike out at a high rate against lefties. Rodon should be able to minimize damage.

Detroit will counter with Keider Montero. He’s a righty who has allowed a .245 ISO and wOBA of .372 to his last 118 batters. Montero has limited walks below 6%. But that’s about all he’s done well with the Tigers this MLB season. Montero has given up a 47.2% hard contact rate and has struck out 17.8% of batters over the past 30 days.

Root on Aaron Judge and Juan Soto to do damage against Montero, who has struggled against both sides of the plate. This win will help adjust the odds to win the World Series for the Yankees.

Back the Yankees in Game 2.

⚾ Game 3 ⚾

• Sunday, 7:10 pm ET
• Marcus Stroman vs Tarik Skubal

The finale of this series will be played in Williamsport, PA, for the MLB Little League Classic on Sunday night’s ESPN broadcast.

New York will give Marcus Stroman the ball for this one. Stroman has allowed a .239 ISO and wOBA of .437 to his last 77 batters. However, his numbers will improve over time if he continues to earn more than 45% of grounders and limits fly balls to 21% as he has.

He’ll battle Tarik Skubal of the Tigers, who has held his last 136 batters to a .113 ISO and wOBA of .275 over the previous month.

• With a 2.53 ERA, Skubal’s Cy Young odds have a higher probability than a month ago.

The kids in Williamsport will want to see runs. But unfortunately, with these two quality pitchers on the hill, we won’t get many. Back the Under for the finale of this series after looking at the Yankees vs Tigers series odds.

For MLB betting news, scores and odds analysis, and more, visit Point Spreads Sports Magazine.

Can’t get enough? Here’s more!

• Blue Jays vs Cubs Picks: Toronto Hits Windy City For Weekend Series
• Red Sox vs Orioles Betting: O’s Should Start Weekend Strong
• Twins vs Rangers MLB Picks: Minnesota Favored in Opener
• MLB: August 14th Weekly Home/Road Report
• MLB: August 13th Weekly Favorite / Dog Report

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