ESPN Sunday Night Baseball features the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees in baseball futures.
It is the third game of a four-game series between these two American League East rivals. The Red Sox may have the edge in this game in baseball betting since Josh Beckett is expected to be on the mound against A.J. Burnett.
Baseball futures will probably still favor New York since they are at home. The pitching edge though looks to be with Boston. Beckett is 3-1 on the season with a 5.70 ERA but since coming off the DL he has gone 2-0 with a 2.18 ERA in three starts. He went eight innings last time out against Cleveland and allowed just one run and three hits. He is 9-6 in the last ten seasons against the Yankees although his ERA is high at 5.95.
Burnett has not been very good lately for New York. He is 9-9 on the season with a 4.93 ERA. He was shelled by the Blue Jays in his last start as he allowed eight runs on eight hits in just 4 2/3 innings. He is 5-3 in his career against the Red Sox with a 4.92 ERA. Burnett is just so inconsistent that the Yankees never know what they are going to get out of him.
The Red Sox normally have all kinds of trouble winning in New York. For Boston to make the playoffs they are going to have to catch either the Yankees or Tampa Bay and that doesn’t look to be an easy task. Boston has been dealing with a number of injuries but they are still in the picture in the American League East. Their hitting has been solid all season as they are second in the league in runs scored but their pitching has been below average all year. Getting Josh Beckett back into top form should help them down the stretch.
The Yankees have an even better offense than Boston and their pitching has been far better. That is why the Yankees look like a playoff team while Boston does not. New York has been very good at home this season vs. the baseball betting odds. Even with Burnett on the mound they are favored simply because they are so good at Yankee Stadium.