Jim McIsaac/Getty Images. Pictured: Gerrit Cole.
Blue Jays vs. Yankees Odds
| Blue Jays Odds | +170 |
| Yankees Odds | -215 |
| Over/Under | 8.5 |
| Time | Tuesday, 7:05 p.m. ET |
| TV | YES |
| Odds as of Monday and via PointsBet | |
The New York Yankees have been one of the best teams in MLB since the trade deadline, fighting their way back into a playoff position. New York currently holds the top wild-card spot in the American League but have been sliding a bit recently, going just 3-7 in their last 10 games.
While the Yankees have dropped three games in a row, Toronto has won five straight, including an 8-0 win in the first game of the series on Labor Day. The Blue Jays enter Tuesday three games behind Boston for a playoff spot, and they just jumped over Oakland in the chase.
Will the Yankees be able to put yesterday’s blowout behind them, or will Toronto keep riding their confidence to a series win?
Toronto Blue Jays
Toronto expected big things out of Steven Matz after trading for him in January, but he is currently their fifth-best starting pitcher. He currently has a 10-7 with a 3.80 ERA in what has been an up-and-down season.
Matz got off to a really good start through the first month but really struggled through May, June and July. In those three months, he posted a 4.83 ERA.
However, it looks like he has turned the corner and settled in. Since the start of August, Matz has pitched to a 1.65 ERA and allowed two runs or fewer in all six of those starts.
The Blue Jays lineup is filled with fun young talent and have been one of the best offenses in the league all year. They crush the ball, leading the league in wOBA and rank second in wRC+.
If it wasn’t for Shohei Ohtani, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. would be running away with the AL MVP Award. He is second in the league with 40 home runs and is batting .321 with a 1.014. In addition to Guerrero, Marcus Semien, Teoscar Hernandez, Bo Bichette, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and George Springer make up one of the best lineups in baseball.
New York Yankees
There is no better way to stop a losing streak than sending Gerrit Cole to the mound.
After some over reactive talk about Cole slowing down, he has once again regained his place as AL Cy Young Award favorite. Cole is 14-6 this season with a 2.73 ERA, the second-best mark in the AL.
Cole has won four straight starts with a 0.73 ERA in that span. His most recent start was a dominant 15-strikeout performance over seven innings against the Angels.
Cole leads the league with 12.48 strikeouts per nine innings. In three starts against Toronto this year, he’s 2-0 with a 2.33 ERA and has not allowed more than two runs in any of his starts against them.
Offensively, the Yankees have been 11th in the league in wOBA and 10th in wRC+ since the start of August. These two teams rank first and second in average exit velocity.
The Yankees big guns have been awesome during that stretch, led by the bash brothers. Aaron Judge is batting .331 with a 1.002 OPS and 170 wRC+, and Giancarlo Stanton is hitting .306 with a .994 OPS and a 168 wRC+.
Blue Jays-Yankees Pick
Both of these offenses are really scary and have bombers throughout the lineup capable of putting up runs with one swing of the bat.
That being said, I am going to back the pitchers on Tuesday. Cole and Matz have both been fantastic over the last month. Since the start of August, they have combined to make 10 starts and allowed a combined eight runs in 57 1/3 innings. That is a 1.57 ERA.
The under is 9-4 between these two teams and the way these two pitchers have been spinning it, I will play under 8.5 on Tuesday night.
Pick: Under 8.5 (+100)
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