The New York Yankees will finish their four-game series with the Oakland Athletics on Sunday afternoon in Oakland. With that said, it’s a good time to check out our MLB odds series, which includes a Yankees-Athletics prediction and pick we have laid out below.
The New York Yankees have seemingly broken out of their recent funk, winning five of their last six games to bring their record to 78-49. New York owns a commanding 8.5-game lead over Tampa Bay in the AL East, and the playoffs are a given at this point.
Oakland, on the other hand, is going to miss the playoffs. The team is 47-81, the worst record in the American League, and the second-worst mark in all of baseball. Still, because this is baseball, anything can happen, and the Athletics are seeking a split of this four-game series.
Here are the Yankees-Athletics MLB odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
MLB Odds: Yankees-Athletics Odds
New York Yankees: -1.5 (-132)
Oakland Athletics: +1.5 (+110)
Over: 8 (-114)
Under: 8 (-106)
Why The Yankees Could Cover The Spread
The Yankees have finally listened to their fans and are giving Clarke Schmidt a chance to start. Well, more like Nestor Cortes was injured and Schmidt was stretched out in Triple-A, but the first one sounds a lot better.
Schmidt has pitched sparingly in the big leagues since his 2020 debut, with a 3.35 ERA in 45.2 career innings. This season has provided fans with their first extended look at the 2016 first rounder, and Schmidt has pitched to a 2.18 ERA in 33 innings. Sunday afternoon will mark just the fourth career start for Schmidt in the big leagues, although most of his time in the minor leagues has come as a starter. Schmidt threw three scoreless innings on Aug. 23, earning a win and lining him up to start in this game. Schmidt's longest outing of the year was 3.1 innings on April 19, earning the win in relief. Lefty Anthony Banda has been added to the roster, seemingly long-relief insurance should Schmidt not pitch for long.
New York's bullpen is the highlight of this pitching staff, with their 3.02 ERA ranking second in the league. Even with Saturday night's implosion, the bullpen has been counted on and trusted all season. Lefty Wandy Peralta has been brilliant, pitching to a 2.57 ERA across 48 appearances, and is the likely closer with the injuries mounting.
New York's offense is getting healthy at the right time, and the wrong time for opponents. MVP candidate Aaron Judge has hit a league-leading 49 home runs and 109 RBI, adding a .295/.396/.661 slash line. Judge has also stolen 14 bases and hit 20 doubles. If only one threat like that lurked in a lineup, opponents would quiver. The Yankees have multiple players with those skills. Anthony Rizzo has sent 28 balls over the wall while providing standout defense at first base. Slugger Giancarlo Stanton has bashed 24 home runs in just 82 games. DJ Lemahieu has consistently provided offense since arriving in New York in 2019, and he has hit 30 extra-base hits while striking out just 65 times and walking 62 times. New York is at or near the top of the league in almost every category and leads the league with an impressive 200 home runs, the only team to reach that total so far.
Why The Athletics Could Cover The Spread
Oakland stole a game Saturday night, fighting back and winning 3-2 in 11 innings. Rookie Adam Oller turned in his best start of his young career, and the bullpen did just enough to secure the victory. Sunday, another rookie will take the ball, as Adrian Martinez will make the sixth start of his big league career. Martinez has pitched to an ugly 6.08 ERA in his five starts this season, but he has only walked seven batters in 23.2 innings. Martinez throws a mid-90s fastball and was projected as a future average back of the rotation member upon being acquired in the Sean Manaea deal.
Oakland's bullpen is better than expected, ranking 20th in ERA. That feat is thanks in large part to lefty A.J. Puk, who has pitched to a 2.58 ERA in 49 appearances, striking out 58 in 52.1 innings. Domingo Acevedo, a longtime Yankees farmhand, has pitched to a 3.32 ERA in 57 appearances.
Oakland's offense has been downright awful this season. Still, Seth Brown has been a bright spot, with 17 home runs to lead the team. Sean Murphy, a popular offseason trade target, has hit 16 home runs with a team-leading .254 batting average paired with his usual stellar defense behind the plate. Rookie Shea Langeliers has excited in his 11 games, hitting two home runs, four doubles, and a triple. Other than that, there is not much to highlight.
Final Yankees-Athletics Prediction & Pick
Bring your glove if you are sitting in the outfield seats for this one.
Final Yankees-Athletics Prediction & Pick: New York -1.5 (-132), over 8 (-114)
Follow Us
Subscribe