Yankees vs. Guardians Game 5 predictions: ALCS picks, odds, bets

The Cleveland Guardians fell short in their quest to knot up the ALCS at two games apiece. After rallying from a 6-2 deficit to level the score in Game 4, Cleveland shortstop Brayan Rocchio failed to cleanly field an Alex Verdugo ground ball in the top of the ninth, leading to a Jon Berti run.Gleyber Torres then hit a single to drive in Anthony Volpe and give the Yankees an 8-6 lead.Tommy Kahnle came on to pitch the bottom of the ninth and worked out of danger with two runners on and one out to close the game.With the Yankees just one win away from the World Series, they’ll turn to Carlos Rodón on the mound to start Game 5, while the Guardians will counter with Tanner Bibee.However, Cleveland’s decision to start Bibee isn’t without risk, as he’ll be pitching on short rest for the first time in his major league career.Rodón showed his worth in the series opener, limiting the Guardians to just one run on three hits in six innings.It was an excellent bounce-back effort after he allowed four runs in 3 ⅔ innings against the Royals in the divisional round.The Yankees will undoubtedly hope for plenty more from the 10-year veteran now that he’s picked up his first postseason win.Nonetheless, this is a matchup that Rodón has particularly thrived in dating back to his days in the AL Central as a member of the White Sox.In 21 games, the southpaw boasts a 2.81 ERA while limiting the Guardians to a .214 batting average and a .275 weighted on-base average (wOBA).And if we just focus on this current Guardians roster, they’re hitting .193 with a .256 wOBA in 92 plate appearances against Rodón. He did a tremendous job using his fastball to get ahead of Cleveland’s hitters before turning to his slider as a putaway pitch.Rodón’s slider will continue to be a key weapon for him against the Guardians, and according to FanGraphs, it’s a pitch they’ve performed the worst against (-19.8 runs below average) all season.The Yankees gave Bibee a rude welcome in Gam...