New York Yankees vs Texas Rangers | Predictions, Preview, Odds & Free Pick | Sportsbookbuzz.com

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MLB Betting Previews- New York Yankees at Texas Rangers
Sunday, May 8, 2011 at 2:05 PM EST on TBS

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Two of the best teams in the American League face one another this upcoming Sunday afternoon when the New York Yankees and the Texas Rangers wrap up a three-game weekend series at Rangers Park in Arlington. Game time is set for 2:05 p.m. (ET) and it will be broadcast nationally on TBS.

New York has the early edge in this series with a 4-1 victory on Friday night as a 102 road favorite. The win moved it to 18-12 on the season; 12-6 at home and 6-6 on the road and maintained a one-game lead over Tampa Bay in the AL East.

After a somewhat shaky start, the Yankee’s overall pitching continues to improve. They now have a team ERA of 3.60 and their 108 earned runs allowed are ranked fifth in the American League. Their hitting has also gotten more consistent with a .248 team batting average and 153 runs scored. Robinson Cano and Curtis Granderson each have 21 RBI and have combined for 18 home runs.

New York will have its ‘ace’ C.C. Sabathia on the mound this Sunday. The left hander is 2-2 this season in seven starts. He has an ERA of 2.68 and a 1.32 WHIP. Last time out, Sabathia gave up 10 hits and four earned runs in seven innings of work against Detroit to get tagged with the loss. Lifetime against the Rangers he is 8-3 with a 4.39 ERA.

Texas has now lost seven of its last 10 games to fall to 17-16 on the year and is currently tied with Oakland for second-place in the AL West; two games behind Los Angeles. It is 11-6 at home this season, but just 1-4 in its last five games in Arlington.

The Rangers’ pitching continues to struggle a bit with a 3.83 team ERA and 123 earned runs allowed. Their hitting has remained solid with a team batting average of .256. Texas is ranked second in the AL in runs scored with 156, but has only managed to average 2.66 runs in its last six games. Its biggest bat, Josh Hamilton remains out of the lineup with a broken shoulder, but Adrian Beltre has done a great job in his absence with a team-high 25 RBI and seven home runs.

Alexi Ogando will get the start for Texas in this game. He is 3-0 in six previous starts this season with a 2.17 ERA and a WHIP of just 0.88. He has given up 14 hits and just four earned runs in his last 18 innings pitched and has averaged six strikeouts a game in his last three starts. Ogando did give up six hits and five earned runs in 6 1/3 innings against the Yankees on April 17.

The home plate umpire for Sunday is Mike DiMuro. So far this season the total is 3-3 with him calling balls and strikes. Last season the slight edge went to the ‘under’ with a 15-17 record against the total line.

New York is 15-9 as a favorite this season and 3-3 as an underdog. The total is 12-15-3 overall and has stayed ‘under’ in four of its last six games.

Texas is 9-10 as a favorite and 8-6 as an underdog. The total is 16-15-2 and has gone ‘over’ in five of its last seven games.

Head-to-head, the Yankees have now won three of four this season after going 6-8 last year. They are 3-6 against the Rangers in their last nine games on the road.

The odds makers have the New York Yankees as a -1.5 point favorite with an run total of 9.

Check out the latest MLB Baseball Odds here.

Prediction: New York should open as a slight road favorite with Sabathia on the mound. Look for C.C. to bounce back from his last start as the Yankees come away with a win and a possible series- sweep depending on the outcome of Saturday’s game.

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