MLB Baseball Betting Action – Indians Try to Complete Sweep of Yankees

[Shame About Ray]

The New York Yankees, (17-18, 9-21-1 O/U) haven’t looked particularly bad in dropping their last two games to the Cleveland Indians, (16-17, 14-19 O/U) as they enter tonight’s three-game series finale looking to avoid getting swept by the Indians at home for the first time since 1989, they just haven’t looked like the better team by any stretch of the imagination or in any aspect of the game.

"That's two straight days our offense has been pitiful," said New York leadoff hitter Johnny Damon, who has gone 0-for-9 in this series.

After splitting my two picks on these past two contests in the BetUS Sportsbook, I am back with a winning selection for tonight’s series finale for the BetUS MLB betting community.

The Indians, have won four of their last six games overall and five consecutive road contests while posting a solid 4-2 record against New York this season.

The Yankees, on the other hand, have dropped five straight games o AL Central teams after getting swept at home by the Detroit Tigers in a three-game set at home last week.

Cleveland has gotten two spectacular pitching performances in a row, including a terrific one on Wednesday from Cliff Lee who shut the Yankees out for seven innings, allowing six hits while striking out seven in the Indians’ emphatic 3-0 win.

Tonight, Cleveland will try to complete their sweep by sending veteran right-hander Paul Byrd, who is coming off a solid start in his last outing as he shut out the Seattle Mariners for 7 2/3 innings, while allowing just four hits in the process.

Byrd will face veteran Yankees right-hander Mike Mussina, (4-3, 4.23), who is looking to record his fourth consecutive victory after getting off to a dismal 1-3 start with a 5.75 ERA in his first four starts.

Mussina has been dominant lately, posting a 2.50 ERA in winning his last three outings and is coming off what is likely his best outing of the season as he limited the Mariners to just one run on seven hits in six innings of New York’s 6-1 win on Saturday.

Here is a look at tonight’s key trends followed by my MLB Betting Picks.

The Indians are 4-1 in Byrd’s last five starts vs. American League East.
The Indians are 7-2 in Byrd’s last nine Thursday starts.
The Yankees are 4-1 in Mussina’s last five home starts vs. a team with a losing record.
The Yankees are 14-4 in Mussina’s last 18 starts as a favorite of -110 to -150.
The Under is 4-0 in Byrd’s last four starts with the total set at 9.0-10.5.
The Under is 4-0 in Mussina’s last four starts vs. a team with a losing record.
The Over is 6-1-2 in Mussina’s last nine starts vs. Indians.
The Over is 5-1-1 in the last seven meetings in New York.

Analysis: While I would love to see the Yankees take another fall in this contest, something tells me the are going to break out of their hitting slump just enough to beat Paul Byrd and the Indian in this contest while getting another solid outing from 39-year-old veteran Mike Mussina.

MLB Free Picks: Yankees 5 Indians 4

01:05 PM EST MLB Odds

Cleveland Indians
Paul Byrd - R +1½ -165

New York Yankees
Mike Mussina - R -1½ +145

Over 9½ -110
Under 9½ -110