New York Yankees vs Los Angeles Dodgers | Preview, Odds, Free Pick | Sportsbookbuzz.com

New York Yankees (46-27) at Los Angeles Dodgers (39-34)
7:10 PM EST FOX
FREE Expert MLB Picks

Starting Pitchers
NYY: A. Burnett (6-6, 4.83)
LAD: H. Kuroda (6-5, 3.06)

The AL East-leading Yankees won their third straight, while the Dodgers lost their 10th in 13 games, as New York downed Los Angeles 2-1 in an interleague series pitching dual in a three-game series opener on Friday night.

Now Joe Torre, who ended his 12-year managerial run with the New York three years ago, will look to rebound against the Bronx Bombers, evening the series at one apiece by taking game two on Saturday at Chavez Ravine.

The teams are facing each other for just the second time in regular-season play. The last time these teams met in the regular season, the Dodgers took two of three at home back in 2004. But these clubs are no strangers to each other, with most of their history coming in the World Series, with New York winning eight of the 11 meetings.

Although the bullpens are pretty close, featuring two of the best closers in baseball—LA’s Jonathan Broxton and the Yank’s Mariano Rivera –offense is the biggest difference between these two clubs. The Dodgers offense hasn’t lived up to expectations ranking 8th in batting average, 13th in RBIs, and 11th in hits and a distant 22nd in HRs. The Yankees, on the other hand, have one of the most potent offenses in the majors, ranking in the top six of every major category.

New York’s attack has a solid lineup from top to bottom, and has been getting help from multiple role players. Robinson Cano, in particular, has been a quiet superstar. The number five batter in the rotation; he’s averaging .361 with 14 HRs this year and leads the Yankees in average, HRs, hits and RBIs.

Meanwhile, LA’s offense has stuttered and outside slugger Manny Ramirez, who is just 18 for 42 with nine RBIs in his last 10 games overall, there are only two Dodgers that have contributed to Los Angeles’ mediocre offense—Andre Ethier and Matt Kemp. Both of who went 0-for-4 in game one.

The Yanks will try to continue their pitching dominance calling on veteran darling A.J. Burnett. The righty has struggled of late, not winning any of his four starts in June and getting the hook in the fourth inning in two of those outings. He has given up 23 earned runs on 29 hits in that span. His last win was back on May 30 and he is just 6-6 on the year. He will look to get back on track against the Dodgers, a team that Burnett has done well against with 2.45 ERA and 3-2 record against. It could be just the thing get the 24-year old hurler back in track.

Los Angeles will counter Hiroki Kuroda who has been remarkably consistent in June. The righty pitched seven innings on Sunday night, allowing just two runs off seven hits in a 2-0 loss to the Red Sox. He gave up and RBI-infield single in the first and a sac fly in the third for his only damage on the night. Kuroda has never faced the Yankees in his career, and is 2-2 with a 3.18 ERA in seven starts at Dodger Stadium this season.

The odds makers have the Yankees as 1-½ favorites with a run total of 8 ½.

These two teams are far closer in talent than their records indicate. But with the Yanks bats being the better of the two, I expect New York to win game two and the UNDER.

Click Here for more FREE Expert MLB Picks

New York Yankees Betting Trends: