The New York Yankees (68-55) don’t have the luxury to relax, as they’re currently locked in a tight race with the Toronto Blue Jays for the top spot in the American League East. (The Yankees are a half-game behind Toronto.) The Houston Astros (69-56), meanwhile, are looking for more breathing room between them and the Texas Rangers in the AL West.
Will the Astros draw first blood in this three-game series? Or will the Yankees prevail? Read on for a detailed preview of this game. You can also click here for an overview of the AL wild card race.
[sc:MLBArticles ]Houston Astros vs. New York Yankees Preview
Where: Yankee Stadium, Bronx
When: Monday, August 24, 2015, 7:05 PM ET
Line: Houston Astros vs. New York Yankees – view all MLB lines
Betting on the Houston Astros
[sc:MLB240banner ]Cy Young Award contender and groundball enthusiast Dallas Keuchel wants another win over the Yankees. He’ll get the chance later tonight when makes his last August start against the Bronx Bombers.
Keuchel (14-6, 2.37 ERA) has pitched well so far this month, coming up with a 2-1 record and a 2.60 ERA across four starts. The last time he was on the mound, Keuchel pitched for seven innings and gave up just two earned runs on seven hits but because Houston’s offense arrived late, he had to settle with a no-decision in a 3-2 win over Tampa Bay on August 19.
Still, Keuchel has that otherwise strong outing to build on as he pitches against the Yankees, whom he beat last June 25. That day, Keuchel was simply at his best, as he tossed a complete game shutout, allowing just six hits with 12 strikeouts, in a 4-0 win at home. This time, however, he’ll have to do it on the road, where he’s just 3-6 with a 3.65 ERA in 11 starts. For comparison’s sake, Keuchel is 11-0 with a 1.35 ERA in 14 home starts.
Houston’s offense has hit a rough patch this August with the team batting a collective .219 and producing just 69 runs in 20 games thus far this month, which should put extra pressure on Keuchel to do great against the hard-hitting Yankees. Jose Altuve, however, is doing great at the plate of late, going 13-for-31 (.419) over his past seven games. Evan Gattis is hitting just .240 in his last seven games, but he is .294 (5-for-17) with a homer in his career opposite Yankees starter, Nathan Eovaldi.
The under is 3-0 in Keuchel’s last three starts overall.
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Betting on the New York Yankees
For a guy that owns a 4.24 ERA, Nathan Eovaldi’s 13-2 record can be viewed as some kind of an anomaly. But anomaly or not, the Yankees could care less so long as they continue to win every time Eovaldi is on the mound. Over Eovaldi’s last 10 starts, the Yankees were able to go 8-2.
Eovaldi, however, has mostly the Yankees offense to thank for his win-loss card. After all, he is getting 7.48 runs per nine innings pitched, which is the second highest among all qualified starters in the majors. That said, Eovaldi didn’t need that many runs to beat Houston, 3-2, on June 26, when he yielded just two runs on five hits in six innings of work.
Eovaldi is 5-0 with a 3.46 ERA and .250 opponents’ batting average in 11 starts at Yankee Stadium thus far this season.
Like the Astros, New York is also struggling on offense this month, coming up with a triple slash line of .227/.296/.383 while averaging 3.4 runs in 20 games this August.
Jacoby Ellsbury has batted 11-for-28 (.393) with a homer and three RBIs in his last seven games. Greg Bird, on the other hand, is 7-for-20(.350) over his past six games.
Writer’s Prediction
Houston wins, 4-3.
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