Dodgers vs. Yankees Prediction: Yamamoto-Schlittler Duel Highlights Sunday Doubleheader at Yankee Stadium

The Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees close out their weekend series with a Sunday day-night doubleheader at Yankee Stadium, and the opener carries the kind of marquee pitching matchup that only comes around a few times a season. Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Cam Schlittler, both first-half All-Stars, were originally lined up to face each other Saturday night in a nationally televised showcase, but rain in the Bronx pushed the whole thing back a day. Now the two right-handers get their first career head-to-head meeting as the ceremonial first pitch of a twin bill, with first pitch set for 7:20 PM ET.

The Dodgers arrive at 62-36, still sitting atop the NL West, while the Yankees are 54-43 and have used a productive week to stay in the thick of the AL East picture. Los Angeles has gone 5-5 over its last 10 games but carries a one-game winning streak into the Bronx, while New York is also 5-5 in its last 10 and dropped its most recent game. The Yankees did take the series opener on Friday, winning 2-1, so this doubleheader is really a chance for the home team to salvage a series split after the Saturday washout scrambled the schedule.

What the Betting Market Is Saying

Oddsmakers have installed the Dodgers as modest favorites, with Los Angeles sitting around -1.5 on the run line and hovering near even money on the moneyline, while the Yankees are priced close to a coin flip themselves given the quality of Schlittler on the mound. The total sits at 7.5 runs, and it’s telling that despite the star power in this lineup, the public and the money have leaned heavily toward the under given how well both starters have pitched this season. Bettors have piled onto Los Angeles too, with the vast majority of tickets and dollars backing the Dodgers to win this one, which on a short-priced favorite like this is more about respecting Yamamoto than fading the Yankees. Anyone shopping for the best number on this spot should check an odds shopping guide before locking in a side.

Yamamoto vs. Schlittler: A Pitching Duel Worth the Wait

Yamamoto has been everything the Dodgers hoped for when they made him one of the richest international signings in franchise history, sitting at 9-6 with a 2.85 ERA and a sparkling 0.90 WHIP over his first full big-league season in Los Angeles. His command of the splitter has made him one of the toughest at-bats in the National League, and he’ll need every bit of that precision against a Yankees lineup that has found ways to produce even with key injuries. On the other side, Schlittler has been one of the best stories in the American League, posting a 9-5 record with a minuscule 2.05 ERA and a WHIP under 1.00, numbers that have made him a legitimate Cy Young conversation piece as a 25-year-old facing the Dodgers for the first time in his career.

Both bullpens will matter plenty in this one given how deep each rotation has been hit by injuries. The Dodgers are still without Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow, and closer Edwin Díaz, all working their way back from elbow, back, and bullpen ailments respectively, which has put extra strain on names like Justin Wrobleski, who has actually been Los Angeles’ most reliable arm by ERA and win total this season. New York, meanwhile, is missing Carlos Rodón, Max Fried, and Clarke Schmidt from its rotation, all in various stages of return from elbow issues, and has been without its biggest bat for weeks.

That missing bat is Aaron Judge, whose fractured rib still hasn’t healed enough for him to resume baseball activities, a significant blow for a Yankees offense that has otherwise found a way to stay afloat. Giancarlo Stanton remains out with a calf strain that has lingered since the spring, forcing manager Aaron Boone to lean on a reshuffled lineup that includes Ben Rice at DH and Jasson Domínguez patrolling right field in Judge’s absence. Center fielder Trent Grisham, who has settled into an everyday role while wearing No. 12 this season, gives the Yankees length at the top of the order and has been a steady complementary piece behind the middle-of-the-order bats.

Los Angeles has its own COVID-esque list of absences to navigate, with catcher Will Smith sidelined by neck inflammation that has kept him out since June and Kiké Hernández still working his way back from an oblique strain on a rehab assignment in Oklahoma City. Despite all that, the Dodgers’ offense has continued to produce, and Paul Goldschmidt has been a steady run producer for New York, giving both lineups reason to believe this could turn into more than a pure pitcher’s duel once the bullpens get involved in the middle innings.

Prediction and Best Bet

Given the caliber of both starters, this profiles as a game that stays low-scoring deep into the middle innings before bullpen fatigue and injury-thinned depth on both sides creates a few extra runs late. The Dodgers’ lineup has more thump even with Smith out, and Yamamoto has shown he can go deep into games without much traffic on the bases, which should be enough to give Los Angeles a slight edge in a game decided by one or two runs.

• Prediction: Dodgers 4, Yankees 2
• Best Bet: Dodgers on the run line

With Yamamoto working on close to a week’s rest and New York’s beat-up rotation still without three key starters, betting on the Dodgers to control this game enough to cover the run line is the most defensible angle on the board, especially with Los Angeles’ bullpen deeper than the shorthanded unit New York will lean on if this stays close into the seventh inning.