Wednesday, August 20

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AMERICAN LEAGUE

N.Y. Yankees (66-59) at Toronto (65-60)

Blue Jays rookie David Purcey (2-3, 5.93 ERA) makes his first career start against the storied Yankees and veteran Andy Pettitte (12-9, 4.30) when these A.L. East rivals clash in the middle game of their series at the Rogers Centre.

Toronto rallied for a 2-1 victory Tuesday, improving to 6-1 in its last seven games. The Jays are on hot streaks of 6-2 versus divisional foes and 6-2 against southpaw starters.

Since coming out of the All-Star break with eight straight wins, the Yankees have lost 14 of their last 22, going 3-9 on the road during this stretch. They're also in slumps of 0-4 versus lefty starters, 0-6 on the road against southpaws and 0-4 with Pettitte on the hill.

The season series between these squads is now tied at 5, with the host winning seven of the 10 meetings.

Pettitte has a 7.40 ERA in his last four starts, all Yankees losses. That includes a 4-3 home defeat against Kansas City on Friday, when Pettitte got a no-decision after yeilding three runs on six hits and four walks. On the bright side, Pettitte has actually pitched better on the road this year (7-4, 3.87 ERA) than at home (5-5, 4.72).

The veteran southpaw is 16-10 with a 4.16 ERA in 34 career appearances (33 starts) against the Blue Jays, but he lost a 4-1 decision back on July 13 in Toronto, allowing all four runs on eight hits in six innings.

Purcey is coming off the best start of his brief career, holding the Tigers to two hits and three walks in six scoreless innings en route to a 4-3 victory. Purcey has gone at least six innings in three of his last four starts, and he's 1-1 with a 3.86 ERA in three outings at the Rogers Centre.

In this rivalry, the under is on streaks of 8-3 overall, 5-1 in Toronto and 5-0 when Pettitte faces the Blue Jays. The under is also 6-2 in New York's last eight overall, 11-3 in Pettitte's last 14 road starts, 16-5 in Pettitte's last 21 versus the A.L. East, 16-4-1 in Toronto's last 21 games overall and 14-3 in Toronto's last 17 at home.

ATS ADVANTAGE: UNDER

L.A. Angels (76-48) at Tampa Bay (77-48)

The two best teams in the American League cap a three-game series at Tropicana Field, with the Rays gunning for the sweep as they go with Matt Garza (10-7, 3.63) opposite the Angels' Jered Weaver (10-9, 4.48).

Tampa Bay held on for a 6-4 victory Monday night, then rallied for a 4-2 victory Tuesday, boosting their major-league-best home record to 47-17, including 43-10 in the last 53. The Rays, who are now tied with the Cubs for baseball's best record, are on a 16-4 overall run (7-1 at home), and they're now 6-2 against the Angels this year (5-0 at home). Tampa has also won six of its last seven against the A.L. West.

L.A. is fighting a rare slump, having lost five of its last six, including the last three in a row. Despite the downturn which includes a 1-4 mark on this current road trip the Angels remain baseball's top road team with a 39-25 record. They're also on streaks of, 21-8 versus the A.L. East, 20-9 against right-handed starters, 22-8 versus winning teams, 4-1 when Weaver goes up against the A.L. East and 10-5 following a defeat.

The home team has won seven of the eight clashes between these clubs this season and 10 of the last 11 going back to 2007.

Weaver has gone five straight games without a quality start, and his ERA during this stretch is 6.57, yet Los Angeles has won three of the five contests. However, the Halos are 5-8 in his 13 road starts, with Weaver going 5-5 with a 4.89 ERA.

Garza recorded his third complete game in his last 10 stats on Friday at Texas, yielding just two hits and two walks while striking out nine in a 7-0 victory. Garza has been solid at home this year, going 6-2 with a 2.47 ERA in 11 starts.

Weaver dominated the Rays at home on June 10, allowing a run on four hits in eight innings of 6-1 win. He also pitched in Tampa two years earlier, giving up two runs on four hits in six innings, winning 6-2. Meanwhile, Garza's lone start against the Angels came last July when he was with the Twins, and the right-hander yielded four runs (three earned) on seven hits, losing 7-2 at home.

For the Angels, the over is on runs of 7-2 against right-handed starters, 4-2 against the A.L. East, 4-0 when Weaver faces the A.L. East and 5-2 for the Rays at home. However, the under is 8-2 in Garza's last 10 home stats and 4-1 in his last five overall.

ATS ADVANTAGE: TAMPA BAY

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