Tarik Skubal's five points were impressive and should give the Guardians a good feel for their hitting heading into the ALCS game against the Yankees.
Still, their sheer workload suggests the two opposing lineups won't be all that close.
During the second half of the regular season, Cleveland's hitters had a wRC+ of 93, the worst of any team in the playoffs.
During this period, his hard hit rate ranked 30th, and his BB/K ratio remained 12th.
In the second half of the season, the Yankees posted a wRC+ of 119, ranking first in BB/K rate and third in hard hit rate.
One of the main arguments that the Yankees could slump again entering the playoffs was that once Aaron Judge and Juan Soto cooled down, the rest of the offense would follow suit.
Although Judge and Soto weren't at their best in the ALDS, the Yankees were still able to overcome a strong pitching staff.
Giancarlo Stanton seems to have found his stroke again, and depth Anthony Volpe and Gleyber Torres had a number of quality at-bats in this series.
Cleveland's most noteworthy aspect against the Yankees is its bullpen, which ranks first with a 2.57 ERA this season.
However, Cleveland's relievers were forced to pitch 26/3 innings against Detroit and will likely have a heavy workload in this series as well.
The Yankees relievers pitched 15 square innings without giving up a run against Kansas City, and key players Clay Holmes and Tommy Kahnle seem to be in great shape.
The Yankees' starting rotation had a 3.85 ERA (11th) in 2024, while the Guardians' staff had a 4.40 ERA, which ranked 24th. The Yankees' advantage here will become even more pronounced once Nestor Cortez returns.
Learn everything you need to know about MLB betting
The Guardians' starting pitching could be chased early in the series, and unless Cleveland's overworked bullpen dominates, this game might not be that close.
THE PLAY: Yankees ALCS spread -1.5 games (+102, FanDuel).
Why trust New York Post Betting?
Nicholas Martin handicaps the NHL, MLB and NFL for the New York Post. He strives to include relevant game notes in his articles to help bettors reach their own conclusions, but he's also up 180 units himself on the sports betting app's verified picks. Nick can be found at X @nickm_hockey.
