The Houston Astros take on the New York Yankees for the series finale on Sunday, with the Astros currently winning 2-1. The Astros delivered a combined no-hitter in Saturdays matchup, this was just the 14th no-hitter in Astors History. The Yankees are getting discussed as the “best team in baseball” can they respond? Let’s find out. Here is my complete preview and prediction.
Astro’s Proving Who They Are
The Astros have submitted their stance as one of the best teams in baseball both offensively and defensively. It’s simple, the Astros continue to win games and continue to dominate in those games. They have recorded series victories against the Rangers, White Sox, and Mets prior to this series propelled by dominant pitching. Houston has a dominant bullpen that leads the Majors with a 2.55 ERA. Houston have a record of 45-26 grabbing them first place in the AL West. They are also 8-2 in their last 10 games, over those games they are batting .241 and have outscored opponents by 24 runs.
Star, Yordan Alvarez has eight doubles, two triples and 22 home runs for the Astros. Michael Brantley is 12-for-40 with three doubles, a home run and five RBI over the past 10 games.Alvarez has eight doubles, two triples and 22 home runs for the Astros. Michael Brantley is 12-for-40 with three doubles, a home run and five RBI over the past 10 games.
Jose Urquidy gets the start for this one and is looking to follow his teammates and limit this dangerous Yankees offense. Last game, the Astros combined to no-hit the Yankees led by Cristian Javier who went 7 innings deep striking out 13 batters. Urquidy comes into this one with a 4.68 ERA, 1.46 WHIP for a 6-3 record over 67.1 innings of work. Whilst the numbers don’t sound great Urquidy does have some good pitches in his arsenal. He’s coming off a great start against the Mets where he went 6 innings with just 1 run allowed and 4 hits.
Slump in the Bronx?
It’s easy to overreact to a couple of bad games in sports, and that’s maybe what we are doing with Yankees. Let me correct that, the Yankees are one of the best teams in baseball so far (maybe not once we get to the post season). But it’s not crazy to think this loaded team could be in a slump. Baseball is a game of momentum and the Yankees don’t have a lot of it. Over their last 5 games they are averaging a batting average of just .146 (their season average is .244). They have scored just 1 run in their last 2 games.
Despite this, their stars are putting up big numbers for the season. Aaron Judge has 27 home runs, 34 walks and 53 RBI while hitting .295 for the Yankees. Gleyber Torres is 9-for-33 with five doubles, a home run and four RBI over the past 10 games.
What is maybe more of a surprise is their pitching staffs results. Over their last 5 the Yankees starters are posting a shocking 5.59 ERA. Nester Cortes looks to turn this around for the Yankees as he gets the start on Sunday. His overall numbers are very impressive this season with a 6-3 record, over 74 innings of work, Cortes has posted a 2.31 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and struck-out 78 batters. He hasn’t quite looked the same in his last three starts however, allowing 4 runs twice and only last 4.1 innings in two of those three games.
Tough Day for the Yanks
It might sound crazy picking against the best team in baseball, especially with Cortes on the mound but the Yankees aren’t playing well at the moment, Cortes included. With the Yankees struggling offensively and the Astros dominating behind their elite pitching staff, I’m taking advantage of the fact they are an underdog and asking them to stay within a run.
FREE PICK: Houston Astros +1.5 (1 Unit)
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