Guardians vs. Yankees Prediction, Odds and Probable Pitchers for ALCS Game 2

Will Gerrit Cole lead the Yankees to a 2-0 series lead?

New York Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole. / Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

The New York Yankees took a 1-0 series lead in the ALCS on Monday night, riding a strong start from lefty Carlos Rodon to a win over the Cleveland Guardians.

Cleveland mustered just two runs on Monday – although it did score the first run of the postseason off of the New York bullpen – in a 5-2 loss.

Juan Soto came up big for the Yankees early, hitting a solo homer, and a few miscues by the Cleveland pitching staff (wild pitches and walks) allowed the Yankees to open up an early lead. Giancarlo Stanton provided a capper with a late solo home run. 

New York now turns to its ace, Gerrit Cole, in Game 2 of this series. Oddsmakers have the Yankees heavily favored to win, but Cleveland isn’t going to go quietly. It counters with Tanner Bibee, who pitched in Game 1 and Game 4 in the ALDS, leading the Guardians to two wins. 

Here’s a breakdown of the odds, key players to watch and my prediction for Game 2 of the ALCS. 

Guardians vs. Yankees Odds, Run Line and Total

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook.

Run Line

• Guardians +1.5 (-162)
• Yankees -1.5 (+136)

Moneyline

• Guardians: +142
• Yankees: -170

Total

• 7 (Over -110/Under -110)

Guardians vs. Yankees Probable Pitchers

• Cleveland: Tanner Bibee (12-8, 3.47 ERA)
• New York: Gerrit Cole (8-5, 3.41 ERA)

Guardians vs. Yankees How to Watch

• Date: Tuesday, Oct. 15
• Time: 7:38 p.m. EST
• Venue: Yankee Stadium
• How to Watch (TV): TBS
• Series: Yankees lead 1-0

Guardians vs. Yankees Key Players to Watch

Cleveland Guardians

Tanner Bibee: Bibee had a strong regular season for the Guardians, and he’s only allowed two runs in 8.2 innings of work this postseason. However, the Guardians have not let him pitch five full innings in a game this season, meaning they'll likely tax their bullpen again on Tuesday night. Overall, Cleveland is 24-9 (including playoffs) when Bibee takes the mound this season. 

New York Yankees

Aaron Judge: The Yankees need the soon-to-be 2024 AL MVP to get going. Judge was 0-for-2 with a walk, run scored and RBI in Game 1, but it’s been Stanton and Soto who have carried this New York offense in the playoffs. Judge has had his fair share of postseason struggles in his career, but if he can work through them, this New York offense is going to be tough to stop. 

Guardians vs. Yankees Prediction and Pick

There’s no doubt that the Guardians are good in Bibee’s starts – they’ve won over 72 percent of them – but I’m not sold on them winning this matchup.

Cole was lights out in Game 4 of the ALDS against Kansas City, tossing seven innings of one-run ball, and that aligns with his strong finish to the regular season. In September, Cole had a 2.53 ERA in five starts, allowing one or fewer earned runs in four of those outings.

Cleveland’s offense hasn’t exactly lit things up so far in the postseason, and its bullpen has taken a step back after ranking No. 1 in ERA in MLB during the regular season. 

Since Bibee hasn’t worked deep into games this postseason, I’m worried about Cleveland cobbling together another 12 or more outs on Tuesday night after taxing the bullpen in Game 1. 

On the Yankees side of things, they’ve allowed just one run in the postseason out of the ‘pen, and now they’ll hopefully get some length from their ace. 

I’ll trust Cole to give the Yankees a 2-0 series lead on Tuesday. 

Pick: Yankees Moneyline (-170)

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Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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