New York @ Baltimore preview

Last Meeting ( Oct 3, 2015 ) NY Yankees 2, Baltimore 9

The New York Yankees are trying to find some momentum to take with them into the playoffs and Mother Nature is not cooperating. After Friday’s game was postponed, the Yankees will try to get in as much of a three-game series as they can when they visit the Baltimore Orioles on Saturday for a split doubleheader to open their final regular-season set.

All teams playing on the East Coast this weekend are keeping an eye on the weather as Hurricane Joaquin slowly makes its way toward the country, and postseason positioning could be impacted by the results of several games in that area. New York clinched a wild-card spot when it snapped a three-game slide with a 4-1 win over Boston on Thursday, but the Yankees still don’t know who they’ll play in that contest and need one more win to ensure the wild card will be played at Yankee Stadium. The Orioles (78-81) took the final two of a four-game set at home against a Toronto team that was resting most of its starters after clinching the American League East. Baltimore needs a strong final weekend to move past Boston and Tampa Bay, avoiding the bottom spot in the East.

TV: 7:05 p.m. ET, YES (New York), MASN (Baltimore)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Yankees RH Luis Severino (5-3, 2.77 ERA) vs. Orioles RH Ubaldo Jimenez (12-10, 4.10)

Severino figures to be on a short leash as the team keeps him fresh for what it hopes will be an extended run through the postseason. The 21-year-old is 2-0 in his last three starts and spun six scoreless frames in a win over the Chicago White Sox on Sunday. Severino is making his first start against Baltimore and is 2-1 with a 2.43 ERA on the road.

Jimenez is throwing well as he comes to the end of his second season in Baltimore and will try to close things out with a third consecutive quality start. The Dominican Republic native suffered a loss at Boston on Sunday despite allowing two runs and seven hits in seven innings. Jimenez struck out eight and yielded three runs over seven innings in a win at New York on Sept. 9 to improve to 4-5 with a 6.23 ERA in 10 career starts against the Yankees.

WALK-OFFS

1. Yankees CF Jacoby Ellsbury and 3B Chase Headley both sat out on Thursday due to back pain.

2. Baltimore 3B Manny Machado is 4-for-8 with three home runs, four RBIs and four runs scored in the last two games.

3. Thursday's triumph marked the 10,000th regular-season win in franchise history for New York.

PREDICTION: Yankees 6, Orioles 2