Five Picks for the Rockies vs. Yankees Series Opener

Colorado Rockies at New York Yankees

Kyle Freeland (3-5) vs. Carlos Rodon (13-8)

New York Yankees -2.5

The Yankees are coming off of a huge series win against the first place in the American League Central Cleveland Guardians. Aaron Judge is red hot, and the offense is rolling. They now hold a 1.5 game lead over the division, and this series against Colorado may just be their most important series all season so far. With the Orioles hosting a series with the Houston Astros this weekend, the Yankees could have the opportunity to widen the gap for the division lead. They’ll need to come out tonight against Kyle Freeland looking to hit, and win big to set the tone for the entire series. 

Player Prop Picks

Carlos Rodon Over 17.5 Pitching Outs

Rodon had a great stretch back in late July, and has put together some solid starts going over five innings in a couple recent starts, but didn’t have the best outing against Detroit last time out, going 3.1 innings pitched, with four earned runs, and five strikeouts. He’ll need a bounce back start tonight against the Rockies in Yankee Stadium, against a team that strikes out the second most among the entire league. A great bounce back start would be six strong innings from Rodon, and that would put the Yankees in a great position to win the series opener. 

Jazz Chisholm Jr. Over 0.5 Total Bases

Jazz is coming off of the IL after giving Yankee fans a big scare with a possible UCL injury. Back in the lineup tonight, Jazz will be hungry to get back to producing after being out of the lineup. This season Jazz has a .265 batting average against left handed pitching with four home runs and 22 RBI. His power numbers are better against right handed pitching but his average is slightly better against lefties, making a total base play of just one safe. 

Aaron Judge Over 0.5 Home Runs

At this point in the season, there’s not much value for an Aaron Judge home run but it’s still a plus odds prop for the best hitter in the sport. Judge is on a three game home run streak, and against a left handed Kyle Freeland will look to improve the streak to four. Kyle Freeland has an 8.23 ERA on the road this season, and has given up five home runs across his last four road starts.

Juan Soto Over 1.5 Hits + Runs + RBI

Soto has been on a tear lately as far as power’s gone. That alone can clear this line if he finds a way to hit one out against Kyle Freeland. Soto is hitting .298 with 12 home runs and 37 RBI against left handed pitching this season. After a hitless final game against Cleveland, he’ll look to bounce back tonight and help the Yankees start the series off on a high note.