The New York Yankees are taking on water, and Sunday signaled the time to call Mayday.
Luis Severino and the Yankees walk into Tuesday’s road game as big +180 underdogs on BetMGM opposite the Atlanta Braves.
It marks the second-biggest underdogs the Yankees have been all season, trailing only their status as +190 underdogs to Jacob deGrom and the Texas Rangers on April 28 in Texas.
Entering the year, the Yankees hadn’t been saddled with odds this long since Aug. 19, 2017, when they faced the Red Sox as +236 underdogs.
The Yankees actually won that game, 4-3, with C.C. Sabathia on the mound opposite Chris Sale (second in AL Cy Young voting).
The Bronx Bombers being this big of an underdog isn’t surprising since they’re facing the Braves, but what makes it concerning is that they aren’t even facing Atlanta’s ace.
Bryce Elder has been an average pitcher at best this season and was beaten up badly in his last two outings, allowing 10 earned runs in his previous 9⅓ innings pitched.
But if Elder is average, then Severino is closer to minor league level with a league-worst 8.06 ERA and having allowed 18 home runs in his 63 2/3 innings pitched.
Severino sure seems like he is being set up for disaster against the offensive juggernaut that is the Braves, who have already hit 215 home runs, 34 more than any other team (the Dodgers have 181).
Betting on Baseball?
No one should be betting on the Yankees right now, especially with how the Braves have performed during the season.
But oddsmakers are beginning to look at the Yankees like a bottom-10 team in baseball.