Orioles-Yankees Series Preview

By Djack

Photo Via ESPN

The home stretch has officially begun. These are the times that separate the boys from the men. Over the next 36 games the Yankees will face divisional opponents 30 times, this is the perfect opportunity for us to sneak our way into the playoffs. Tonight we start a three game set with the Orioles and it's going to be a home run derby. Two teams built for power, i expect a lot of dingers and a lot of lead changes. 

Game 1: Luis Cessa, takes the mound tonight against Yovani Gallardo, in the first game of this weekends series. Cessa hasn't lost this season and I don't expect for that to change. Gallardo's ERA is above five and I expect for the Yankees to tee off on him at home. Cessa looked good his last outing and if he can keep the orioles under five runs through six innings we should be looking good for a win tonight. 

Game 2: A young pitchers worst nightmare will be Saturday's game in Yankee stadium. You have two young pitchers in Dylan Bundy and Chad Green facing off against two very powerful lineups in one of the smallest parks in all of baseball. Dylan Bundy, has really impressed me lately, putting a string of good starts together. I think he will out duel Chad Green who is coming off his best performance of the season, but he is facing one of the scariest lineups in baseball. I expect for this one to be close, but the Orioles will prevail at the end and take game 2.

Game 3: Pineda vs. Gausman, a battle of two pitchers whose records don't reflect their actually performances. Yes, Pineda hasn't been an ace this season, the only problem has been that one inning where he just loses his ability to pitch. At home in a crucial rubber game I think he'll be able to hold it together. Meanwhile, the Yankees offense will take care of Gausman handing him a ticket to an early exit. I expect the young guns to carry the offense through this series as we collect another series win.