The Minnesota Twins (13-10, 6-4 home) continue a three-game home series against the New York Yankees (13-10, 4-3 away) on Tuesday night. Minnesota took care of New York in the opener, defeating the Yankees 6-1 and taking a 3-2 in the regular season series.
First pitch of the AL showdown is at 7:40 p.m. EST at Target Field in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Twins open as the betting favorite (-115 moneyline), and the over/under total is seven runs.
What to Know – New York Yankees
New York has lost two in a row and three of its last four contests. The Yankees have fallen to seven games back in the AL East and sit in fourth place in the standings.
The expected starting pitcher for the Yankees is southpaw Nestor Cortes (3-0, 3.09 ERA, 1.03 WHIP). Cortes has been brilliant to begin the season, picking up victories in three of his first four starts. The 28-year old has logged 23.1 innings, allowing eight earned runs, 20 hits, four walks while striking out 22 batters.
On offense, the Yankees are 27th in the MLB batting .225 as a team and averaging 4.1 runs per game. The pitching staff for New York is second in the league with a 3.16 team earned run average.
Aaron Judge and Anthony Rizzo have picked up the slack offensively with Giancarlo Stanton on the injured list. Rizzo is leading the lineup with a .300 batting average and has driven in 11 runs. Judge has the Yankees home run lead with six and has also driven in 11 RBIs.
What to Know – Minnesota Twins
After losing three in a row the Twins have rallied to pick up victories in their last two games. Minnesota maintains a two-game lead over the Cleveland Guardians in the AL Central.
On the mound for the hosts is right-hander Joe Ryan (4-0, 3.24 ERA, 0.76 WHIP). The third-year pro has won every start this year, posting quality starts in three of the four. Ryan has surrendered nine earned runs over 25.0 innings on 15 hits and four walks, notching 29 punchouts.
Minnesota’s offense is scoring 4.2 runs per game behind a .233 team batting average that ranks 21st in the majors. The Twins pitching staff is third in the MLB, featuring a 3.25 team ERA.
Offensively, production has been low through the first month of play, but the emergence of Trevor Larnach and hot start of Joey Gallo has been a welcome sign. Larnach leads the organization with 15 RBIs, while Gallo has sent six of his nine hits this season over the fence, driving in 12 runners.
The Pick is In
A pair of pitchers that are a combined 7-0 go toe-to-toe in Game 2 of the series. The Yankees have produced just six runs over their last four outings, and the visitors are due for a breakout game offensively. Ryan navigates the NY lineup early, but the Yankees open the game up in the middle innings and hold on to even the series.
The Pick: New York Yankees ML
