New York Yankees vs. Cleveland Guardians Game 3: Picks, Predictions, Odds and Player Props

The American League Championship Series will shift to Ohio for the next three games after the New York Yankees beat the Cleveland Guardians twice in the Bronx.

A pair of excellent pitching performances by Carlos Rodon and Gerrit Cole were the primary reasons for New York’s successes, and now it’s up to Clarke Schmidt in Game 3.

He will be countered by Matthew Boyd, a lefty that has been an important piece of Cleveland’s postseason rotation.

Can the Guardians earn their first win of the ALCS in Game 3? Let’s preview this pivotal matchup and see our expert’s best bets.

New York Yankees vs. Cleveland Guardians Game 3 betting picks and predictions

Cleveland Guardians to win (-105)

Matthew Boyd has been an unsung hero for the Guardians. The lefty joined the rotation late in the season after rehabbing from Tommy John surgery and posted a 2.72 ERA and a 3.10 xERA in eight outings.

He allowed two earned runs or less in seven of the eight starts and limited hitters to a .218 xBA with just a .335 xSLG. Boyd became a critical part of Cleveland’s starting rotation which is by far their weakest attribute as a team.

In 6.2 innings over two appearances this October, he’s yet to allow a run and has only given up five hits and three walks to go with 10 strikeouts. He appeared in only two innings in his last outing which was Game 7 of the ALDS because Stephen Vogt wanted to use his entire bullpen to keep the Detroit Tigers hitters on their toes.

But on Thursday, Boyd is expected to have a much longer leash. He’s earned a deeper start after his pair of performances in the postseason and it’s also important to remember that the Cleveland bullpen is heavily fatigued and has been overused in the last two weeks.

Cleveland has a really good chance of picking up their first win in the ALCS if Boyd can give them at least four innings.

The Guardians lineup must have jumped for joy when they heard the announcement that Schmidt will be the Game 3 starter. Schmidt had a decent season as a back-end starter in the Yankees rotation but he missed a lot of time due to an injury.

When he came back, he posted a 3.65 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP in his final five starts of the regular season. It was good enough to earn him a spot in the postseason rotation and he had his first opportunity in the ALDS against the Royals.

Schmidt went 4.2 innings but allowed two runs and four hits with a walk. The right-hander will be back on the mound on seven days of rest for Thursday’s start against the Guardians.

However, the rest may not be enough to stop him from getting hit hard. The Cleveland lineup has fantastic numbers against Schmidt in their careers, as Steven Kwan, Josh Naylor, Jose Ramirez, and Andres Gimenez are a combined 14-for-30 (.467).

Under 7.5 total runs (-125)

A day off was exactly what the Guardians bullpen needed. It’s become pretty clear that Stephen Vogt is managing each contest like an elimination game, which means he’s not afraid to empty his bullpen on any given night.

He used four relievers in Game 1 and seven relievers in Game 2. The bullpen is pretty exhausted coming into this clash, especially since Vogt overused the bullpen in their previous seven-game series against the Tigers.

Vogt may try and get four innings out of Boyd before going to his high-leverage relievers which include Cade Smith, Tim Herrin, Hunter Gaddis, Erik Sabrowski, and Eli Morgan. Plus, Emmanuel Clase has yet to pitch in this series which means he’s rested and ready to go.

That combination of pitchers should be able to limit the Yankees to three runs or less.

The Yankees bullpen is pretty well rested heading into Game 3 with almost every reliever available to make an appearance. If the game is still close after Schmidt is done, we’re likely going to see Clay Holmes, Tim Hill, Tommy Kahnle, and Luke Weaver come out of the bullpen.

Those four arms have been New York’s most reliable options for the past few weeks which means there shouldn’t be a lot of scoring from Cleveland in the second half of the game. 

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New York Yankees vs. Cleveland Guardians Game 3 odds

New York Yankees	-115 ML
Cleveland Guardians	-105 ML
Run Line	Yankees -1.5
Total	O/U 7.5

New York Yankees vs. Cleveland Guardians Game 3 player props

Player Home Run Odds

Aaron Judge	+250
Juan Soto	+300
Giancarlo Stanton	+340
Jose Ramirez	+400
Kyle Manzardo	+470
Josh Naylor	+520

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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.