It's a 1:10 PM ET start at Progressive Field and the Guardians wasted no time — 2 hits and a run in the bottom of the 1st before the Yankees got their bats off their shoulders. New York is going for the sweep after taking the first 2 of this series, and they're throwing Carlos Rodón at Parker Messick to try and steal the broom.
Rodón is the 1-2, 2.88 ERA guy who actually pitched against this same Cleveland lineup on June 4 and went 6 innings of 2-hit, 1-run ball with 7 strikeouts. The Guardians have seen him recently and still couldn't touch him. Messick has been the bigger story all year — a 25-year-old lefty sitting on a 2.40 ERA through 13 starts, though Texas just tagged him for 3 earned in 5.2 innings his last time out.
The Yankees are running out a lineup that doesn't look like the Yankees. Aaron Judge is on the IL with a stress fracture in his right rib (4-to-6 weeks), Giancarlo Stanton's calf has him shelved for the entire road trip, Jasson Dominguez is still on a rehab assignment, and Austin Wells is dealing with a head issue. They've still gone out and won 4 of 5 — including back-to-back wins in this series — which says more about the pitching than the offense.
- Day-To-DayPayton Henry C — The Yankees signed Henry to a minor-league contract Monday, Gary Phillips of the New York Daily News reports.
- Day-To-DayEric Reyzelman SP — no
- Day-To-DayTravis MacGregor SP — MacGregor underwent Tommy John surgery last September and will miss the entire 2019 season, Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com reports.
- 10-Day-ILAustin Wells C — Wells (head) will resume baseball activities at Yankee Stadium on Wednesday, Brendan Kuty of The Athletic reports.
- 10-Day-ILAaron Judge RF — The Yankees announced Thursday that Judge has a stress fracture of his first rib on his right side and will be sidelined for 4-to-6 weeks before being re-evaluated, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.
- 10-Day-ILJasson Dominguez LF — Dominguez (shoulder) will begin a rehab assignment Friday, Greg Joyce of the New York Post reports.
- 10-Day-ILGiancarlo Stanton DH — Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Thursday that Stanton (calf) will not be activated from the 10-day injured list during the team's June 8-14 road trip, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILMax Fried SP — Fried (elbow) is expected to begin throwing from 120 feet and will also undergo more imaging during the upcoming week, Gary Phillips of the New York Daily News reports.
- Day-To-DayCarlos Hernandez RP — Hernandez (shoulder) began his rehab assignment with Triple-A Omaha on Friday.
- 15-Day-ILErik Sabrowski RP — Manager Stephen Vogt said Sabrowski (elbow) threw a bullpen session Monday that went well, Tim Stebbins of MLB.com reports.
- 60-Day-ILGabriel Arias SS — no
Cleveland has lost 4 of 5 and the only win in there was a 6-0 shutout. The other 4 losses include a 10-0 beatdown from Texas and now consecutive close ones to New York. Stephen Vogt's club is also without shortstop Gabriel Arias (60-day IL), which is not what you want when you're scuffling. Get to Rodón early or you're staring down the Yankees bullpen with a sweep on the line.
Sharp money has shown up here too — tracked bettors are leaning Over on a 7.5 total, with the biggest single ticket on that side checking in at $25K. That's a real number on a game with two starters carrying sub-3.00 ERAs, so somebody thinks the bullpens are the soft spot. Cleveland already has 2 hits and a run in the 1st, so we'll see how long that take ages.
Bottom line: Yankees want the sweep, Guardians need to stop the bleeding before the All-Star break conversation gets ugly, and Rodón vs. Messick should be the kind of pitchers' duel that either ends 2-1 or completely betrays itself by the 6th. Pick your poison.