First Five Play in Yanks, Guards Game 4

First pitch between the Yankees and Guardians is scheduled for 7:00 pm EST.

The Dodgers were eliminated last night at the hands of the San Diego Padres. They were my pick to win the World Series, but they couldn't escape the hot bats. Something about the teams that have to play through the Wild Card games seem to just do better - with the exception of the Astros sweeping the Mariners. Now the Yankees have their backs against the wall again. This is a must-win, and the Guardians have a chance to close it out at home.

Gerrit Cole is taking the ball for the Yankees once again. In the series opener, he had a great start. He went 6.1 innings and allowed just one solo home run. He allowed a total of four hits and one walk but matched that with eight strikeouts. The Guardians just never really had a feel for Cole and it was a fairly easy game for him and the Yankees. One reason for concern, if you're a Yankees fan, is that Cole hasn't been as quite as good on the road as he has been at home. The right-hander has a 3.81 ERA in road starts which is about a half run higher than his home ERA. By no means is it bad, but still something to consider. He did face the Guardians on the road once this year, going six innings and allowing two solo shots. The Yankees won the game 13-4.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - OCTOBER 11: Isiah Kiner-Falefa #12 of the New York Yankees tags out Steven Kwan #38 of the Cleveland Guardians and turns a double play during the seventh inning in game one of the American League Division Series at Yankee Stadium on October 11, 2022 in New York, New York. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

In order for the Guardians to win this game, they will need to break out the lumber. Cole has allowed too many home runs to the opposition this season for the Guardians to not take advantage of it. They will need to get some people on base and put up crooked numbers though. Cal Quantrill is going again for the Guardians after opening the series against Cole. Quantrill didn't have a great start, he allowed four runs, three earned, and four hits. Two of those hits sailed over the fence. He looked a little nervous, or off - something didn't look ready for the stage at least. He doesn't have some sort of drastic split though, so there really aren't any hopes that he will pitch better at home. You'd have to expect that Quantrill will turn in a quality start, but that might not be enough today.

There are only two plays I'd recommend today: Yankees team total over 3.5, and Yankees 1st five innings -0.5 at -115. I think both of them have a good shot at happening, but I think this game plays out very similarly to the first one. Sure, the Guardians have momentum after yesterday's thrilling ninth inning comeback, but that's not enough. I'm going to take the first five play and if I play the team total, it will just be a sprinkle.

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