Cleveland Guardians vs New York Yankees Prediction & Betting Tips - MLB

Prediction published on 01/06/2022, 18:47  by Joseph King | Modified on 02/07/2022 at 01:48 in MLB Predictions

A doubleheader is on the slate for Saturday in Major League Baseball when the Cleveland Guardians host the New York Yankees for the first of back-to-back games at Progressive Field. New York comes into this game after a sweep of the Oakland A's followed up by a close 2-1 loss to the Houston Astros. Despite the loss, the Bombers still sit comfortably atop the AL East with a massive 12 game lead over the second-place Blue Jays. Their 56-21 record is the best in baseball and they’ve won six of their last 10 games. The Guardians come into today’s doubleheader chasing the Twins for the lead in the AL Central. The two teams just finished a brawl of a five game series, in which Cleveland won three games to two. The result sees Cleveland now trailing Minnesota by just 1.5 games as we near the midway point of the MLB season. 

Taking the mound for the visiting Yankees in the first game of the doubleheader is Nestor Cortes. The 27-year-old lefty is 6-3 on the season with a solid 2.53 ERA in 14 starts. However, Cortes has struggled in recent outings, giving up 12 total runs in his last four starts which totaled just 18 innings pitched. Even with a shaky Cortes on the mound, the Yanks’ bats did enough to split his last four appearances 2-2. Triston McKenzie gets the start for the hosts and the third-year pro finds himself in a very tough spot. McKenzie is 4-6 on the year with a 4.03 ERA and now has to face down the highest scoring team in baseball in the New York Yankees who have crushed right handed pitchers all year. McKenzie gave up seven earned runs in his last outing and 13 runs in his last 10 innings pitched in total. He’s also had trouble limiting home runs, giving up five during that stretch, which is music to the ears of the Yankees power bats.