The Red Sox took the first game of the weekend series against the Aaron Judge-less New York Yankees, can Boston make it two in a row?
The Red Sox sit at .500 on the year, but will look to run down the Yankees with some success in the Bronx this weekend, with New York currently four games ahead in the loss column. Boston sends out Tanner Houck to limit a banged up Yankees lineup while the Red Sox try to tack on runs against Domingo German.
Here are the odds for Red Sox-Yankees on Saturday afternoon:
Red Sox vs. Yankees odds, run line and total
Red Sox vs. Yankees prediction and pick
The Yankees offense is about league average with Aaron Judge in the lineup this season, 14th in wRC+ over the course of the year, but it's clear that the team lacks depth behind him. The team averages 3.4 runs in the 16 games that Judge has missed this season while hitting ,216.
Houck's numbers look concerning on the surface, he has a 5.46 ERA while walking more than three batters per nine innings. However, his xERA is far lower at 3.85 and hints that he should be in for some good starts in the near future. Against a banged up Yankees lineup, this could be the time for him to string together a quality start.
Meanwhile, the Red Sox boast a far more potent lineup over the course of the season, eighth in wRC+ as a unit, and should be able to hand German some much needed regression. The Yankees right hander has been incredibly lucky on the mound, opponents are hitting .199 on balls in play, but allows a ton of hard contact with foes hitting home runs on 14% of fly balls. Boston is seventh in slugging percentage this season and the right team to get to German.
I'll take Boston as underdogs on Saturday, the Yankees are a completely different team without Judge on the field.
Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.