New York Yankees vs Cleveland Indians
Jordan Montgomery (4.24 ERA) Aaron Civale (2.18 ERA)
The Bronx Bombers have been rather underwhelming out of the gate, with their offense struggling to the tune of a .208 team average (26th in MLB) and 3.6 runs per game (29th in MLB).
The lack of production from players like Giancarlo Stanton (.170 AVG), Gleyber Torres (.182 AVG), Aaron Hicks (.160 AVG), and Clint Frazier (.162 AVG) is troubling for Yankees fans, as these were initially thought to be key contributors in the lineup.
A four-game series looms against an Indians rotation that will deploy 25-year-old Aaron Civale Thursday, who has impressed in three starts this season.
Left-hander Jordan Montgomery, who’s struggled in his last two starts (11.0 IP, 8 ER, 4 HR), will get the nod for Aaron Boone’s group,
Given the offensive struggles from both clubs (28th and 29th in team AVG), I look for Civale to outduel Montgomery on Thursday, leaning me towards Indians 1H, and potentially even full game.
Until the Yankees lineup gets back on track, they’ll be a prime fade for me — especially given their overvalue in the betting market.
San Diego Padres vs Los Angeles Dodgers
Ryan Weathers (0.93 ERA) vs Walker Buehler (2.00 ERA)
This is shaping up to be the most entertaining rivalry of the 2021 season, which is great for MLB.
Walker Buehler (1-0) will toe the rubber against 21-year-old Ryan Weathers (1-0), who will likely serve as an opener for San Diego. This will be just the fourth appearance of Weathers’ young career, the seventh overall pick in the 2018 draft.
The Dodgers got the best of them last weekend, taking two of three in San Diego, and now they’ll return home for a four-game stint against their newly formed division rivals.
Despite all the hype the Padres were getting in the offseason, they haven’t been super impressive thus far — sitting just third in the NL West.
They’ve been getting good starting pitching, but their offense has yet to get it going — a common theme around baseball.
The struggles from their face of the franchise, Fernando Tatis Jr., could be why, as he’s slashing just .143/.421/.564 with a 40% strikeout rate.
The Dodgers on the other hand have coasted through the first three weeks of the season, winning 14 of 18 en route to the best record in baseball.
This weekend will be very telling in determining whether or not the Padres can keep pace in the NL West, making this far more than a typical April series.
Should be fun.
