Since moving into their new ballpark, the New York Yankees have not been swept at home. In their last series before the All-Star Break, the Seattle Mariners came close, taking three out of four. On Friday, the Mariners will have another chance as the open up a three-game series.
The Yankees are the MLB betting lines favorites at -155 while the Mariners are +135.
The New York Yankees (75-46, 40-21 home) shrugged off a mediocre start to August by winning their first series of the month recently against Detroit. They have won three in a row and have done it without Alex Rodriguez.
Yankees’ second baseman Robinson Cano will look to homer in his fourth consecutive game on Friday. He is hitting .417 over the last three games to raise his batting average to .325, fifth best in the AL. Center fielder Curtis Granderson has added two homers of his own over that same stretch.
The starting pitcher for New York will be A.J. Burnett (9-10, 4.66 ERA). The right-hander is coming off of a solid outing in which he gave up one run in eight innings. He ended up with the loss, however, as his offensive teammates were not able to score a run.
The slightly resurgent Seattle Mariners (48-73, 19-41 away) will attempt to win their third straight for the seventh time of the season. They are 6-3 since Daren Brown replaced Don Wakamatsu as manager earlier in the month. Rookie Matt Tuiasosopo has two homers and seven RBIs in the last two games.
Friday’s scheduled starter for Seattle is Felix Hernandez (8-10, 2.62 ERA). The right-hander has the third best ERA in the AL. He struck out 11 and tossed a two-hitter in a 7-0 win June 30 in his first start at new Yankee Stadium and is 2-0 with a 0.50 ERA in two starts against New York this season.
