Aaron Judge #99 of the New York Yankees high fives Juan Soto. (Photo by New York Yankees/Getty Images)
Here is everything you need to know about the only nationally televised MLB game on Tuesday, May 7, which will air on TBS.
New York Yankees (27-15) @ Minnesota Twins (24-16), 7:40 pm EST, TBS
Odds: Yankees -125 (ESPNBet)
Probable Starters: Carlos Rodon (NYY) 3-2, 3.56 ERA vs Chris Paddack (MIN) 4-1, 4.34 ERA
Preview: Both teams are coming into Tuesday night’s battle having won seven of their last ten games. The Twins have even put together a 12-game win streak this season. Ten of those 12 games did come against the Chicago White Sox and the Los Angeles Angels, so take it with a grain of salt.
The Twins have struggled against teams over .500 all year, going 12-15 in those games. So that means they have been dominant in beating up the bad teams in the MLB (12-1 against teams under .500) but haven’t had the same success against better competition. Their pitching has been the reason for their success, leading the league in strikeouts as a team, but the only two batting statistics that the Twins rank in the top ten are slugging percentage and OPS.
Chris Paddack has already started more games in 2024 than in the previous two seasons combined. Since leaving the Padres in 2021, he has struggled to stay healthy. The only time he faced the Yankees was in 2019, when he went 5.0 innings and gave up four runs.
The Yankees have had a great start to the 2024 season. Led by new addition Juan Soto and captain Aaron Judge, they have the third-best run differential in baseball. Judge started the year slow, but in the last seven days, he’s batting .333 with three home runs and seven RBIs.
Carlos Rodon struggled in his first year in pinstripes in 2023 after missing the first half of the season, but he has bounced back early in 2024. Since he started his career with the White Sox, he has a lot of experience facing the Twins. In 12 appearances in his career, he is 6-3 with an ERA of 4.62. His last start against them came in 2021.
Prediction: The Twins pitching staff is top 10 in home runs allowed this season and the Yankees love to hit the long ball.
Yankees win
