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The New York Yankees and Cleveland Guardians will resume their ALCS set in Cleveland on Thursday at 5:08 p.m. ET. They played the first two games in New York before a travel day to bring them to today's important matchup.
The Yankees took the first two games by a combined six runs, so while they were far from blowouts, they were a little more comfortable than they could have been. The Guardians are trying to avoid the dreaded 3-0 hole today.
Guardians vs. Yankees: Recent Form and Records
The New York Yankees ended the regular season on a bit of a lull, winning just five out of the final 10 games they played and losing three straight series. However, they quickly bounced back by trouncing the Kansas City Royals. So far, they're an impressive 5-1 in the playoffs.
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The Cleveland Guardians also came into the postseason on a bit of a lull. They lost two in a row and won just five out of their last 10. They rebounded to oust the Detroit Tigers in five games but are 3-4 overall in the postseason.
Players to Watch
Starting pitchers
Clarke Schmidt (0-0, 3.86 ERA, 4 SO) vs. Matthew Boyd (0-0, 0.00 ERA, 10 SO)
Clarke Schmidt had a 1.18 WHIP and 93 strikeouts in 85.1 innings during the season.
Last Start: (playoffs) 4.2 innings, four hits, two earned runs, one walk and four strikeouts.
Career vs. Guardians: 1-0 with a 3.52 ERA and 18 strikeouts in four appearances.
Meanwhile, Matthew Boyd had a 1.13 WHIP and 46 strikeouts in 39.2 innings during the season.
Last Start: (playoffs) Two innings, one hit, no earned runs, one walk and five strikeouts.
Career vs. Yankees: 1-3 with a 5.17 ERA and 29 strikeouts in six appearances.
Must-watch Hitters
Yankees
Gleyber Torres has been red-hot in the leadoff spot. He's six for his last 14 with two doubles, an RBI and a walk.
Aaron Judge finally woke from his slumber. His first-inning pop-up yielded a run, he had a sacrifice fly and a monster two-run home run.
Guardians
Brayan Rocchio has eight hits in his last five postseason games, and he's had two hits in both games against the Yankees this series. One of those was a home run.
Steven Kwan has at least one hit in every single playoff game this year. The outfielder also has 11 hits in the last five games in the postseason.
Guardians vs. Yankees Baseball Betting Odds
Guardians vs. Yankees Expert Predictions
Finally, there's a relatively even pitching matchup in the series, with the Guardians potentially having a slight advantage. Still, they have not looked good and have not played clean baseball at all, which has given the Yankees the two-game lead.
The Yankees haven't really broken out on offense, but they do have 11 runs in this series so far. They struggle more against lefties, but the bullpen behind Matthew Boyd, who's only recorded 6.2 total innings this postseason, is extremely taxed.
Run Spread: -1.5
Total Runs: Over 7
Prediction: Yankees 5, Guardians 4
