YANKEES VS. ORIOLES SERIES PREVIEW

Just two weeks ago the Yankees lost 2-of-3 to the Baltimore Orioles at Yankee Stadium. Since then the two teams have gone 6-4 each and they’ll meet each other for a quick 2-game set at Camden Yards in Baltimore. Let’s look at the pitching matchups…

Monday: Ivan Nova vs. Jason Hammel

Last time out, Ivan Nova had one of his better starts of the season in a relatively big game against the Tampa Bay Rays. He allowed just two runs in 7 innings while striking out eight, so he’ll be looking to build on that performance. Nova has faced the Orioles twice this year going 1-1 with a 4.73 ERA while striking out 10 and walking four in 13.1 innings. On the season Nova is 4-1 with a 5.02 ERA.

Jason Hammel has been great so far for the Orioles this season. He’s 4-1 with a 2.09 ERA on the season and he’s 0-1 with a 3.00 ERA against the Yanks this season in one start on April 30. He went 6 innings, allowing two runs while striking out five and walking a pair.

Tuesday: CC Sabathia vs. Wei-Yin Chen

CC Sabathia has been on an absolute roll of late. He’s gone eight innings in four straight starts (against the Rangers, Tigers, Royals, and Rays) while pitching to a 2.25 ERA and striking out 31 in 32 innings. He’s now 5-0 on the season with a 3.51 ERA. It’ll be his second start against the O’s this season after his first start against Baltimore resulted in four runs through 6 innings pitched and his first win of the season.

Wei-Yin Chen goes for the O’s. He’s gotten off to a good start in his first season in the States. He’s 3-0 on the year with a 2.68 ERA and in his lone start against the Yankees, and his Major League debut, he went 5.2 innings, allowing two runs while striking out six on April 10. It was obviously the first time the Yankees saw Chen, so hopefully this time around the bats will provide better results.

Who’s hot…
*Derek Jeter’s 2012 season continues. Over the last 10 games he’s batting .341. His average on the year stands at .372 and he leads MLB with 54 hits.  He also has a .421 On-Base-Percentage (OBP).

Robinson Cano’s 10-game hit streak was snapped on Sunday against the Mariners, but he’s hitting .370 (20-for-54) his last 14 games with two homers and 10 RBI.

Raul Ibanez once had a 6-game hitting streak, but it was snapped on Sunday against the Mariners. Either way, Ibanez has been hot of late. He’s hitting .476 (10-for-21) in his last nine games while knocking out four home runs while driving in nine RBI. Speaking of RBI, Ibanez is 2nd in the team in that category with 21.




--Jesse Schindler, BYB Lead Staff Writer
Follow me on Twitter @SchindlerJesse


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