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The New York Yankees and the Los Angeles Angels will continue a three-game series on Tuesday night. It's time to continue our MLB odds series and make a Yankees-Angels prediction and pick.
The Angels shocked the baseball world on Monday by pulling off a wild win to start this series. It was a back-and-forth affair, but in the end Los Angeles barely outlasted the Yankees. New York will surely be looking to right the ship in this one, as their hot streak has suddenly turned into a three-game losing stretch. The Yankees need to keep up their winning ways in order to stay afloat in both the AL East and wild card contention, so every game carries plenty of weight for them. The Angels are essentially just playing as spoilers because their playoff hopes are all but nonexistent at this point.
Here's how the bookmakers have set the lines for Tuesday's game.
MLB Odds: Yankees-Angels Odds
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New York Yankees -1 1/2 (-125)
Los Angeles Angels +1 1/2 (+105)
Over 9 1/2 runs (-105)
Under 9 1/2 runs (-115)
Why The Yankees Could Cover The Spread
When the Yankees went on their recent 13-game winning streak, the offense was the driving factor. In the month of August New York ranks either inside the top ten or just outside of it in batting average, slugging percentage, OBP, and OPS. Sluggers Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton have each broken out over the last three weeks, with both players owning a batting average over .325. This offense has been on fire, and it's unlikely that Angels starter Jaime Barria will be able to stop them.
Barria has hardly pitched this season, but his numbers over his eight appearances aren't particularly good. He's posted a 5.56 ERA and a 1.56 WHIP on the year. Barria is also a bit of a wild card in terms of how long his outings will last. He's capable of pitching seven innings, but he's often pulled after three. The Yankees should be able to get to him early and force the Angels bullpen into the game by the fourth or fifth inning. Los Angeles pitched a bullpen game on Monday, so asking the relief corps to pitch another strong five innings against a high-powered offense is demanding far too much. New York should post plenty of runs in this contest.
Why The Angels Could Cover The Spread
Luckily for the Angels, their underrated offense will have a good chance to keep pace with the Yankees in this one. Jameson Taillon is set to pitch for the Bronx Bombers, something that hasn't worked out all that well in Taillon's last three starts.
Over those appearances, Taillon has pitched 13 innings and given up 11 runs. Miraculously he wasn't saddled with a loss in that span because of New York's stellar offense. He also couldn't make it out of the fifth inning in any of those starts, meaning that Los Angeles should see plenty of the Yankees bullpen in this one. New York's relievers are some of the best in the game, but they're coming off of a game that was turned over to the bullpen to begin the fifth inning. Fatigue is certainly in play in the Yankees eighth straight contest without a day off.
The Angels also have some statistical edges over Taillon as they head into this matchup. Los Angeles is a significantly better offense when they play at home, proven by a leap in their team batting average, OBP, OPS, and slugging percentage. Taillon has struggled on the road all year long, earning a 5.18 ERA when asked to pitch away from Yankee Stadium. Los Angeles has also faced the righty this year, scoring five runs in five innings off of him. A repeat performance from this Angels offense is certainly possible.
Final Yankees-Angels Prediction & Pick
This is a difficult pick to make, but the Angels should cover here. Everything is in place for Taillon to have another bad outing, which means the Los Angeles pitching staff just has to be mediocre in order for them to cover. It will be close, but the Angels should lose by one run or win in this one.
FINAL PICK: Los Angeles Angels +1 1/2 (+105)
