Chris Boline
Things are heating up in the race for the World Series, as the Wild Card Weekend has been wrapped up. Now, clubs are ready to try and punch their tickets to the ALCS and NLCS, respectively. For people all over New York and Cleveland, they can’t wait for things to get started. In this piece, we have MLB picks for the Yankees vs. Guardians AL Division Series. Which club will move on to the next round?
Yankees are favorites over the Guardians in this one
As you could have guessed, the Yankees are favorites over the Guardians in this one. These two teams are quite familiar with one another, as these two sides have a past. This is what’s making people all the more interested in this series getting under way, as it could turn out to be a memorable showdown. Cleveland has an upset on its mind, while Yankees fans are expecting this team to take care of business.
For the Guardians, this team looked sharp in the Wild Card Round going up against the Rays. They’ve got a ton of confidence heading into this matchup with the Yankees, as slugger Jose Ramirez is all set to remind people that he’s one of the best hitters in the American League. Ramirez is a stud and no one is going to ever doubt that. He’ll need to be on point against the Yankees’ staff.
| MLB ALDS odds |  |  |  |  |
| Yankees to win | -220 | -220 | -220 | -220 |
| Guardians to win | +195 | +195 | +195 | +195 |
| Over 4 games | -110 | -110 | -110 | -110 |
| Under 4 games | -110 | -110 | -110 | -110 |
For New York, this club looked like one of the best in all of baseball during the first half of the campaign. However, things changed in recent months, with the Yankees dropping the ball a bit both with their hitting and performances on the bump. Luckily, this team is finally healthy, though plenty of eyebrows were raised when it was announced closer Aroldis Chapman has been left off the ALDS roster.
According to the best-rated sportsbooks, the Yankees hold -220 odds to win this series, while the Guardians have been placed at +195 for their MLB betting odds. While Cleveland has a lot of talent on its roster, they don’t compare to the Yankees, which is going to make things quite difficult. We’re going with the Yankees as our pick to win this series.
Yankees still have high World Series hopes
While New York will need to beat Cleveland first, that’s not the only thing on their minds, as the Yankees still have high World Series hopes this season. Again, in the first half of the year, the Yanks had the top World Series betting odds, with guys like Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton putting on a show at the plate. Injuries dinged NY after the All-Star break, though, which was a nightmare.
Despite his teammates being hurt, Judge was easily one of the best players in the bigs. He finished the regular season with 62 home runs, setting the new AL record for dingers. Judge is now in the MVP hunt and it’s going to come down to him and Shohei Ohtani. People are arguing over these two left and right, but from our chair there’s no question that Judge should be taking home the honors.
The AL Home Run King. Case Closed. pic.twitter.com/mapR8JQPZb
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) October 5, 2022
Judge could set himself over the top if he’s able to help the Yankees win the World Series, though that won’t be an easy task. For New York, they hold +500 MLB Playoffs betting odds. They’re No. 2 in the AL behind the Astros and No. 3 overall behind the Dodgers as well. LA holds the top Fall Classic odds, which sucks to see for people in the Bronx. Only time will tell if the Yankees will be able to deliver in that department.
New York vs. Houston in the ALCS is what everyone is hoping for
While we still have the Division Series to get through, New York vs. Houston in the ALCS is what everyone is hoping for in the near future. The Yankees and Astros don’t like one another and that’s not going to be changing anytime soon. No one has forgotten about what happened in 2017, with Houston’s sign-stealing scandal rocking the MLB as a whole, and people in the Bronx remain livid.
Not only did the Astros beat the Yankees in the playoffs, but Jose Altuve also won MVP. That award should have gone to Judge that year. Now, the Yankees will have a ton of revenge on their minds if these two teams indeed do meet in the ALCS later this month. Houston would be favored for that one, but the Yankees will have what it takes to come out on top.
We’ve got to wait and see if this series even comes to fruition, as both Cleveland and Seattle will hope to record an upset of their own. If Houston and NY advance to the ALCS, though, it could be one of the best series we’ve seen in a long time and there will be a lot of tension between the two sides. We’ll find out soon enough if we get the series so many out there want to see go down.
Ticking down the time 'til Tuesday ⌛️#RepBX pic.twitter.com/VCDQlDHoEd
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) October 9, 2022
