The New York Yankees are bludgeoning opponents during a five-game winning streak and are pushing the Tampa Bay Rays for the best record in the American League. New York figures to have a solid chance at its sixth straight victory when it visits the Athletics on Saturday night at West Sacramento, Calif.

The Yankees drubbed the A’s 8-2 on Friday in the opener of a three-game series and have outscored foes 36-6 during their winning streak. New York has a plus-95 run differential and just recently got ace pitcher Gerrit Cole back from a major arm injury.

The Rays have been slumping but still own a stellar 35-19 record one-third of the way through their season as they entertain the woeful Los Angeles Angels. The Philadelphia Phillies visit the Los Angeles Dodgers in a rematch of last season’s National League Division Series.

NEW YORK YANKEES AT ATHLETICS

Yankees slugger Aaron Judge has 17 homers but has gone deep just once in the past 16 games. The ball carries well at Sutter Health Park and Judge grew up 50 miles south in Linden and would like to slam one over the fence.

Right-hander J.T. Ginn of the Athletics took a no-hitter into the ninth against the Angels two starts ago before losing the no-no and the game and followed up by walking six in 2 1/3 innings in a loss to the San Diego Padres. Ginn will be asked to cool down Ben Rice, who went 4-for-5 with a homer in Friday’s game and is a scorching 9-for-14 over the past three games.

The A’s are in big trouble after being outscored 30-6 in the first four contests of a six-game homestand. Manager Mark Kotsay pointed out that his club hasn’t even led during those games. Not a good recipe combined with Judge due to send a ball into orbit.

Aaron Judge to hit 1-plus homers, +229 (DraftKings)

LOS ANGELES ANGELS AT TAMPA BAY RAYS

The Rays were blanked by the Yankees on Sunday and then were outscored 26-10 in a three-game road set by the Baltimore Orioles before beating the Angels 8-5 in Friday’s series opener. Rays standout Yandy Diaz homered twice in the contest and has four multi-hit games in his last eight appearances.

Angels left-hander Reid Detmers struck out a career-best 14 and allowed one hit (a homer) in eight innings while receiving a no-decision against the Texas Rangers last Sunday. The catch, of course, is Detmers (1-5, 4.57 ERA) has never been consistent – in fact, he was torched for eight runs in 5 2/3 innings in a loss to the Athletics in his previous start.

The Angels are tied with the Detroit Tigers for the worst record in the AL while Mike Trout (three homers, nine RBIs this month) continues to be an ordinary player. Hard to see Los Angeles having much success against Rays right-hander Dennis Rasmussen (4-1, 2.78).

Rays to win game -1.5 runs, +145 (DraftKings)

PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES AT LOS ANGELES DODGERS

This series represents Philadelphia’s first visit to Dodger Stadium since losing to Los Angeles in last season’s National League Division Series when elimination came on right-hander Orion Kerkering’s wild throw home in the 11th inning. The Phillies fell 4-2 in Friday’s contest when they had only three hits and couldn’t keep the Dodgers from hitting balls out of the park.

Freddie Freeman, Max Muncy, Shohei Ohtani and Will Smith all clubbed solo shots for the Dodgers, who had just six hits overall while winning their sixth straight game. The Dodgers have the second-best record in the National League while the Phillies (29-28) continue to flounder despite a recent managerial switch.

Ohtani had three hits on Friday and has homered in back-to-back games to raise his modest season total to 10. Left-hander Jesus Luzardo (4-4, 4.38 this season) pitched well against the Dodgers in the playoffs last season after winning 15 regular-season games but hasn’t found his form this season.

Teams to score over 8.5 runs, -108 (DraftKings)

The Stanley Cup Final matchup is set: The Beasts from the East will face the Pillow Fight (Pacific) Division champs.

In a matchup that follows absolutely dominant victories in the conference finals, the Carolina Hurricanes will face the Vegas Golden Knights in a series that kicks off on Tuesday in Raleigh, N.C.

Oddsmakers have the Hurricanes as favorites, and they do have home-ice advantage in the best-of-seven series, but this could be a down-to-the-wire clash.

With that in mind, here are three reasons why both teams can come out on top.

Why Carolina will win:

• Team play. There are myriad reasons the Hurricanes have lost only once en route to the finals. So many come down to how well they are coached and how well they execute. Carolina may not boast the biggest stars, but they are collectively such a dominating club. In simplest terms, they out-shoot and out-chance their opponents because of their relentless play and ability to find and exploit opponents’ weaknesses.

• Defensively, they are the best team in the league right now, by a country mile. Through their 13 playoff games, the Hurricanes have surrendered only 21 goals, and one of them was with their net empty. And once clubs actually generate shots, goaltender Frederik Andersen has been amazing, having posted a 1.41 goals-against average and .931 save percentage. He allowed more than two goals in only one outing.

• Improved talent. Among the reasons Carolina petered out in past playoff runs was a lack of offensive touch. Basically, the top players were unable to put them over the hump and the supporting cast could not take the load. This club, however, has benefited from the development of young players Logan Stankoven and Jackson Blake and additions such as Nikolaj Ehlers and defenseman K’Andre Miller. As a result, there is not just one line to shut down.

Why Vegas will win:

• Championship experience. This the third trip to the finals in only the franchise’s ninth season, and there are still players from the misfit club that made it this far in the 2017-18 inaugural campaign that shockingly lost out in the finals. There are 13 players still on the team from the Cup-winning squad of 2023. That experience goes a long way when the Stanley Cup is on the line.

• Better special teams. As much as these clubs have flexed their offensive skills, their defensive play is the foundation of their success. Do not expect too many high-scoring affairs, and that means power-play prowess can be the difference. Carolina has been outstanding on the penalty kill so far (a 92.5 percent kill rate), but Vegas is not far back at 87.5 per cent. The big difference is the power play. While Carolina has struggled with the man-advantage (12.5 percent: 7-for-56), Vegas has been consistently strong (23.9 percent: 11-for-46). The Golden Knights also have scored four short-handed goals, three by Brett Howden.

• Offensively, Vegas has more depth actually producing. When you think of the Golden Knights, the names that likely first come to mind are Jack Eichel, Mitch Marner and Mark Stone, and they are all delivering as expected. However, the leading goal scorers are Howden and Pavel Dorofeyev, who both have 10 goals, more than anybody on the Hurricanes roster. Also, the Golden Knights have received more offensive contributions from their defense corps.

The Chicago White Sox will be without rookie slugger Munetaka Murakami for four to six weeks due to a Grade 2 strain of his right hamstring, manager Will Venable announced Saturday.

The White Sox placed Murakami on the 10-day injured list earlier on Saturday.

The 26-year-old first baseman, who shares the American League lead with 20 homers, sustained the injury in Friday’s home win against the Detroit Tigers.

Murakami grabbed his hamstring after hustling down the first base line to beat out a double play in the third inning. He was removed from the game and walked gingerly to the dugout without assistance; pinch runner Luisangel Acuna replaced him. An MRI on Saturday confirmed the injury.

“It hurts. It hurts,” Murakami said through an interpreter as to how his hamstring feels on Saturday.

Murakami is batting .240 with 41 RBIs and leads the AL with 43 runs scored through 57 games in his first year in the majors. The Japanese star signed a two-year, $34 million contract in December.

“It’s obviously disappointing at this stage being injured,” Murakami said. “There’s a lot of ways to contribute to the team, like cheering on and other stuff I can do. I’ll keep doing that so they can keep grinding as a team.”

In corresponding transactions, Chicago selected the contract of infielder Jacob Gonzalez from Triple-A Charlotte and transferred right-hander Jordan Leasure (right flexor strain) to the 60-day injured list.

Gonzalez, who is celebrating his 24th birthday, was not in the starting lineup for Saturday’s matinee with the visiting Detroit Tigers. He is ranked as Chicago’s No. 23 prospect by MLB Pipeline.

A first-round pick (15th overall) by Chicago in 2023 out of Ole Miss, Gonzalez is slashing .317/.419/.668 with 19 home runs and 62 RBIs in 52 games at Charlotte this season. He leads the minor leagues in RBIs and total bases (133) and is tied for the lead in homers through Friday.

Most of Gonzalez’s starts in the minors have been at shortstop, although he has started five games this season at first base and five at second base.

Gonzalez could become just the second player in White Sox history to make his major league debut on his birthday, joining left-hander Ken Patterson on July 8, 1988.

–Field Level Media