- What: MLB American League Championship Series Game
- When: October 17, 2024
- Who: New York Yankees vs. Cleveland Guardians
- Time: 2:08 p.m. PST
- Where: Progressive Field (Cleveland, OH)
The Cleveland Guardians host the New York Yankees in Game 3 of the American League Championship Series on Thursday night at Progressive Field.
Despite the Guardians having the home-field advantage on Thursday, the Yankees seem to be in a stronger position in this series than the Guardians. The Guardians have struggled offensively, scoring only five runs in the series.
The New York Yankees look to take a commanding 3-0 lead in the series.
New York Yankees
Clarke Schmidt will take the mound for New York tonight. He has had a solid season, and although some areas in his game could be improved, he is well-equipped to perform well against Cleveland.
In Schmidt’s previous start against the Guardians on April 13, he recorded seven strikeouts and only allowed one earned run in 5.0 innings. However, he did walk five batters.
The Yankees bullpen has been dominant in the postseason, only allowing two earned runs in 21.2 innings pitched. Luke Weaver has been exceptional as their closer.
Weaver has a perfect record in his all four postseason appearances and secured wins for the Yankees. Three of his four saves have extended beyond one inning. He has nine strikeouts and only three hits allowed in seven innings
Game 3 in Cleveland. #RepBX pic.twitter.com/J71UK11u3Q
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) October 17, 2024
Aaron Judge ended his postseason slump, helping the New York Yankees take a commanding lead in the ALCS with a 6-3 victory over the Cleveland Guardians on Tuesday night.
Despite a slow start in the playoffs, Judge made a significant impact with a sacrifice fly in the 2nd inning, driving in a run, and adding a crucial 2-run home run in the 7th inning, propelling the Bronx Bombers to control of the series.
Cleveland Guardians
The Cleveland Guardians find themselves in a must-win position as the series against the New York Yankees shifts to Progressive Field.
Historically, when teams have gone up 2-0 in the Championship Series, they have advanced 84 percent of the time. Therefore, the Guardians must secure a victory on Thursday evening to stay in the series.
The Guardians are currently down 2-0 in the ALCS and are pinning their hopes on left-hander Matthew Boyd, who has delivered two scoreless outings in the MLB playoffs so far.
Believeland.#ForTheLand | #GuardsBall pic.twitter.com/Odg1vtjAG7
— Cleveland Guardians (@CleGuardians) October 17, 2024
The big question is how long Boyd can last on the mound after two short appearances in the ALDS.
The Guardians were known for their disciplined approach to the plate, but they seem to have abandoned it in this postseason. Instead, they have been more aggressive at the plate, chasing after pitches outside the strike zone.
They have chased pitches over 40 percent of the time in the postseason, which is the second-highest rate among playoff teams just behind the Atlanta Braves.
This is a significant increase from their regular-season performance, and it plays into the hands of the Yankees. Schmidt, excels at getting strikeouts and inducing batters to chase outside the strike zone.
Yankees-Guardians Best Bet
The Guardians must win this game to have any chance in this series. I expect them to come out with some extra fire in this game and the home crowd should help.
However, the Yankees sure look like a much better team. Judge appears to have broken out of his hitting slump and the rest of the team continues to hit whenever runners are on base.
The Guardians’ bullpen is the strength of this team, so instead of picking a side, I’m going to target the total.
The total in this one is 7 runs, and I like the under. Under 7 runs at -110 odds is the best bet.
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Tony Reyes is a sports betting analyst and reporter for Dice City Sports. You can follow him on X @TonyParlay.
