MLB Weekend Preview

By: Mike Rifkin

As April ends and May begins, here is a look at some of the more significant series this weekend. 

American League: Yankees at Rangers: Two teams with high expectations coming into the season. The Yankees because of who they are, and the Rangers for what they did in the offseason. The Yankees will see what they did as they will face Andrew Heaney and Jacob deGrom in the first two games of the four-game series. Both teams come into this series off rough series. The Yankees lost two of three to the Twins, and the Reds swept the Rangers. Both teams have a similar record (NYY: 14-11, TEX: 14-10). The Rangers’ offense averages six runs per game and will take on the team with the third-best ERA in baseball. The Yankees will look to get off on the right foot with their ace Gerrit Cole on the mound, and the Rangers will counter with Andrew Heaney in the opener. 

Mariners at Blue Jays: A playoff rematch, which saw Seattle advance after winning the first two games. Luis Castillo will take on Alek Manoah on Friday, Saturday will have Chris Flexen take on Kevin Gausman, and Sunday will see Marco Gonzalez take on Chris Bassitt. The Mariners have struggled to start and sit three games under .500 and are 4-6 in their last 10. The Blue Jays are 6-4 in their last ten and have won four in a row.

National League: Braves at Mets: The top two teams in the NL East will play the first of four on Friday. Last season the Braves edged the Mets by a game after sweeping them in three games in September in Atlanta, something the Mets have remembered. The Mets will need their bats to wake up and the pitching to improve because the Braves have been rolling. The Mets will get Max Scherzer back from suspension to start the finale.

Cardinals at Dodgers: Two iconic franchises, both of whom have underachieved in April. The Cardinals are at the bottom of the NL Central and are 3-7 in their last ten games. The Dodgers lost two of three to the Pirates and only sit one game back in the NL West despite being .500. This weekend’s series could get one of these teams going.

Interleague: Phillies at Astros: World Series rematch is all I need to say. These two teams have gotten hot, as both are 7-3 in their last ten games. Aaron Nola and Zack Wheeler will take on Framber Valdez and Cristian Javier in the series’ first two games. This series should be fun, with good hitting, pitching, and two good teams.