Giants-Yankees prediction: Picks, odds on Saturday, April 1

The San Francisco Giants and New York Yankees continue their three-game series on Saturday, April 1. The Yankees took the series opener 5-0 on Thursday thanks to a homer from Aaron Judge on his first swing and an 11-strikeout performance from Gerrit Cole through six shutout innings. The first pitch from Yankees Stadium is set for 1:05 p.m. ET. San Francisco will send Alex Cobb to the mound while New York will counter with Clark Schmidt.

At DraftKings Sportsbook, the Yankees are 1.5-point favorites. The Giants are +115 moneyline underdogs, and the over/under is set for 8.5.

Giants-Yankees picks: Saturday, April 1

Giants

Out: SP Luke Jackson, LF Austin Slater, RF Mitch Haniger,

Yankees

Out: SP Frankie Montas, SP Tommy Kahnle, SP Carlos Rodon, CF Harrison Bader, C Austin Wells, SP Luis Severino, SP Lou Trivino,
Day-to-day: SP Nestor Cortes Jr.

Alex Cobb vs. Clark Schmidt

Cobb is making his 2023 season debut after logging 15 starts for San Francisco last season, going 7-8 with a 3.73 ERA with 151 strikeouts and a 1.303 WHIP in 149.2 innings pitched. Cobb is 7-5 against the Yankees throughout his career, logging a 3.21 ERA with 86 strikeouts through 112 innings pitched.

Schmidt enters his fourth season with the Yankees and is coming off a 2022 season in which he logged 10 starts on the hill, going 5-5 with a 3.12 ERA. With a handful of starts against the rest of the league, Schmidt will face off against the Giants for the first time in his career on Saturday.

While the fact that Cole won't be on the mound for Saturday's matchup should make things a bit easier offensively for San Francisco, I'm not entirely sold on this team being able to match the number of runs for the combined total to hit over. Granted, the Giants ranked 11th in runs per game (4.42) a season ago, but they also finished 23rd (0.234) in team batting average. I don't envision them being shut out in back-to-back games, but I think their limited offense will result in this number hitting the under. The weather forecast says it'll be a rainy outing, so the added x-factor could further the belief of a run total finishing under.

Pick: Under 8.5 combined runs

If New York plays as they did in Thursday's home opener, the sky is the limit for them this season. It must have been bittersweet for the Giants to see Judge going yard against them, but the fact of the matter is that this team is stacked with a talented batting lineup. Clark's limited number of starts on the hill may help San Francisco make a game of it, but by the final inning, I'm taking New York.

Pick: Yankees (-135)

  
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