Yahoo Sports Dog of the day: Jays try to ruin no-hitter curtain call for Yankees' Corey Kluber
For the second time in two days, a pitcher takes the mound for his first start after a no-hitter. Welcome to Major League Baseball in 2021.
Corey Kluber of the New York Yankees is coming off a no-hitter last week against the Texas Rangers. Kluber's great start, a Yankees six-game winning streak and a Blue Jays six-game losing streak are the main reasons New York is a heavy -175 favorite at BetMGM on Tuesday.
On Monday, Spencer Turnbull of the Detroit Tigers got his first start after a no-hitter. He was fine against the Cleveland Indians, giving up three runs in six innings. He basically pitched to his level before the no-hitter, which is what history says will happen more often than not. Then the Tigers' bad bullpen gave up three more runs and the Indians won 6-5.
We have to assume Kluber will pitch like he was before the no-hitter, because that's generally what happens. Kluber's level before his no-hitter was far from vintage Kluber. He had a decent 3.48 ERA but a bloated 1.40 WHIP (walks and hits per inning pitched), which means his ERA should have been in for some regression. Then he threw a no-hitter. Kluber also had a great two-hit, 10-strikeout performance over eight innings against the Detroit Tigers on May 2.
Kluber is still a capable starter, but the Blue Jays aren't the Rangers or Tigers.
Toronto has the seventh-best team OPS in baseball. They have lost six in a row but hitting has mostly not been the issue for the Jays. Pitching has. There's a chance Toronto gets outscored if starter Steven Matz gets crushed or the bullpen fails, but that's the reason they're significant underdogs.
The good news for Matz is the Yankees aren't too tough on lefties. The Yankees' .709 OPS against lefties is 17th in MLB via Fangraphs. Matz has a 4.69 ERA but his advanced ERA metrics say that's a little unlucky (4.09 FIP and 3.68 xFIP). Matz has been inconsistent, but he's capable of a quality start.
The Jays are a talented team, and a losing streak is a reason they're 23-23. It's a bit scary to go against a hot Yankees team, but the +145 line for a Toronto team that has one of the best lineups in baseball is a good one. For the second straight day, let's take an underdog against a pitcher coming off a no-hitter.
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