First pitch: Friday, 7:05 p.m. ET
Line: Baltimore +100, New York -110, Total: 9.5

The Yankees will be looking to win their third straight game when they host the Orioles on Friday.

The Orioles are currently one-game back in the AL East and could really use a victory over the Yankees in this series. New York doesn’t have any intentions to give up on the season, though. The Yankees are still fighting for an AL Wild Card spot and are currently 4.5 games back in that race. While it may seem like a stretch for them to claw their way back into it, the Yankees are playing well and will do their best to chip away at that deficit. The starters in this game are set to be RHP Yovani Gallardo (4-5, 5.08 ERA, 62 K) for the Orioles and RHP Luis Cessa (3-0, 4.01 ERA, 16 K) for the Yankees. One trend that really stands out in this one is that New York is 34-15 against the money line after three straight games where the team committed no errors over the past two seasons. The Yankees are also 28-17 against the money line after six or more consecutive road games over the past two seasons.

The Orioles have Gallardo on the hill on Friday and the righty has been solid for the team recently. Gallardo has allowed three or fewer earned runs over the past four games and that is the type of performance his team needs from him. Although the Orioles have lost in his past three starts, that is because they are not providing him with run support. That shouldn’t be an issue too often the rest of the way, as Baltimore has one of the most explosive offenses in the league. The Orioles will be hoping that 3B Manny Machado (.303, 29 HR, 78 RBI), 1B Chris Davis (.223, 30 HR, 69 RBI) and OF Mark Trumbo (.257, 38 HR, 93 RBI) are ready to play in this one. All three guys are extremely dangerous at the plate and should be able to take advantage of the short outfield in Yankee Stadium.

The Yankees are playing really well right now and are going to be hoping that Luis Cessa can come through with a good performance on Friday. Sessa was brilliant his last time on the mound, allowing no earned runs in six innings in a Aug. 20 start against the Angels. He struck out five batters in that game and walked just one. It’d be big if Cessa could keep his walks down once again on Friday, but he’ll also need to make sure he doesn’t throw anything too hittable against a powerful Orioles lineup. Offensively, the Yankees are going to be counting on C Gary Sanchez (.389, 9 HR, 16 RBI) once again. Sanchez has homered eight times over the past 10 games and looks like a superstar in the making for New York. He is red-hot at the moment and should be able to take advantage of Gallardo at least once in this one.