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On Friday, the New York Yankees and Cleveland Guardians will meet at Progressive Field in Cleveland, Ohio for Game 4 of the ALCS. It will be the penultimate game in Cleveland before the series shifts back to the Bronx, if necessary, for Game 6 and 7.
After falling to the Yankees in the first two games, Cleveland surged in Game 3 on Thursday. With two outs in the ninth inning, Jhonkensy Noel tied the game with a homer before a two-run shot from David Fry walked it off in the bottom of the 10th. Cleveland now trails New York 2-1 in the series.
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"DAVID FRY! BALLGAME! #WALKOFF" - MLB
Yankees vs Guardians recent form and records
The Guardians finished the 2024 MLB regular season with a record of 92-69, 6.5 games ahead of the second-place Kansas City Royals. 4-4 so far this postseason, the Guardians beat the Tigers in five games of the ALDS before advancing to the ALCS, where they are now.
The 94 wins posted by the New York Yankees were the most in the AL this season. After besting the Royals in the divisional series, the Yankees are in the ALCS for the second time in three seasons. However, last time they made it this far in 2022, their season ended with a sweep at the hands of the Houston Astros.
Players to Watch
Starting Pitchers
NYY: Luis Gil (15-7, 3.50 ERA) vs CLE: Gavin Williams (3-10, 4.86 ERA)
Gil has a 1.193 WHIP, 4.6 BB/9 and 171 K in 150.1 IP.
Last Start: Loss, 5.2 IP, 6 H, 6 ER, 1 BB, 5 K vs PIT
Career vs CLE: 0-1 4 6.14 ERA (7.1 IP, 5 ER) 2 HR in 2 games
Williams has a 1.368 WHIP, 3.8 BB/9 and 79 K in 76 IP.
Last Start: ND, 5.2 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 3 K vs STL
Career vs NYY: 0-1 6.23 ERA (4.1 IP, 3 ER) 1 HR in 1 game
Must-Watch Hitters
New York
On Thursday, Giancarlo Stanton hit his team-leading third home run of the postseason. Now a .308 hitter on his team's postseason push, Stanton also boasts a 1.150 OPS this October.
Aaron Judge also went deep on Thursday, hitting second home run in as many games. Although the team captain is hitting a mere .174 this October, his .801 OSP suggests that the outfielder has been coming up with big hits when they are needed.
"AARON JUDGE LEGACY MOMENT! HOME RUN!" - Talkin' Yanks
Although Game 3 was the first game of the postseason that Gleyber Torres did not find himself on base, the Venezuelan contributed with a sac-fly. A .294 hitter in his career against Cleveland, Torres is 7-for-27 in the postseason, with a pair of doubles.
Cleveland
Lane Thomas is proving that Cleveland's decision to acquire him from the Washington Nationals at the trade deadline has paid off. So far this October, the outfielder has hit .286/.394/.536 with 2 homers and 9 RBIs.
Until Game 3, Jhonkensy Noel was not having a postseason. However, down to their last out in Game 3, "Big Christmas" delivered with his first career postseason home run. A 13-homer hitter in 67 games this year, watch out for Noel to prove his power again in Game 4.
"JHONKENSY NOEL TIES IT WITH A PINCH HIT HOME RUN! BIG CHRISTMAS!!!!" - Talkin' Baseball
Yankees vs Guardians baseball betting odds
Yankees vs Guardians expert picks and game prediction
Offensively, the Yankees and Guardians have had a similar postseason, scoring 31 and 30 runs respectively. Moreover, the respective batting averages of the two clubs are within five points of each other, and both have hit five homers in the ALCS.
As such, it is likely that Game 4 will come down to pitching, with Luis Gil facing off against Gavin Williams. Neither arm owns particularly good spreads against the other club, with Williams having made just one career start against New York, that did not end well.
However, Cleveland's 50 home wins in the regular season led MLB. Judging by the electricity of the crowd in Game 3, the crowd will be with their team every step of the way to in Game 4.
Run Line: -1.5 +145
Total Runs: U 7.5 -105
Prediction: Cleveland W, 4-3
