The Texas Rangers have spent more days atop the AL West Division this season than they had the rest of the decade but whether they stay there may depend on the right arm of pitcher Jacob deGrom. The two-time NL Cy Young winner was placed on the 15-day injured list Saturday with right elbow inflammation after early exits in two of his past three starts. Rangers GM Chris Young said the team hopes to know in about a week how long deGrom might miss. Here are two intriguing matchups around the majors early this week.

Top MLB Betting Picks of the Week (May 1st, 2023)

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Cleveland Guardians vs. New York Yankees

• When: Monday, May 1, 2023, 7:05 PM ET
• Where: Yankees Stadium, Brooklyn, NY
• TV: BSGL, YES
• Radio: WMMS 100.7 FM (Guardians) // WFAN 101.9 FM (Yankees)
• Live Stream: MLB.tv
• MLB Betting Odds: Guardians (+109) / Yankees (-133)

The Yankees will remain without star and reigning AL MVP Aaron Judge at least one more game Monday and in fact his mild hip strain will be re-evaluated on Monday. Judge, who produced a single-season AL-record 62 home runs last season, is hitting .261 with six homers and 14 RBIs in 26 games this season. He had played in every Yankees game until being out of the lineup Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Monday is expected to be the decision day on Judge because if he does need to go on the IL, the Yankees can still back-date it to Friday to allow him to return in the quickest time possible. If they wait any longer, they can only back-date three days from when they make the IL call.

Manager Aaron Boone said the all-out way Judge plays the game would not factor into the ultimate decision of when he will be ready to play.

“It’s as simple as, is he ready to go?” Boone said. “If we feel like there’s some risk there, then we’ll push it back.”

New York already is playing without outfielders Giancarlo Stanton (left hamstring strain) and Harrison Bader (left oblique strain), and third baseman Josh Donaldson (right hamstring strain). All are on the IL, along with six pitchers.

It’s Domingo German on the mound Monday for the Yankees. German (2-2) earned the win last Wednesday, allowing six runs on five hits and two walks over six innings in a 12-6 victory over Minnesota. He struck out eight. German was gifted with double-digit run support, so he fired a ton of strikes (60 of 84 pitches) and surrendered three home runs. The long ball continues to be an issue for the right-hander, who’s now allowed seven through his first five starts. German’s 5.54 ERA isn’t ideal, but he has a stellar 33:9 K:BB through 26 innings.

Cal Quantrill starts for Cleveland on the mound. Quantrill (1-2, 5.40 ERA) took the loss last Monday, coughing up five runs on eight hits and two walks over 3.1 innings as the Guardians fell 6-0 to the Rockies. He struck out two. A Jurickson Profar solo shot in the first inning set the tone for the evening, and Quantrill got chased in the fourth after giving up four singles and two walks to the first seven hitters he faced in the frame.

MLB Betting Pick: Yankees

Minnesota Twins vs. Chicago White Sox

• When: Tuesday, May 2, 2023, 7:10 PM ET
• Where: Guaranteed Rate Field, Chicago, IL
• TV: BSNO, NBCSCH
• Radio: 102.9 The Wolf (Twins) // WMVP AM 1000 (White Sox)
• Live Stream: MLB.tv
• MLB Betting Odds: TBA

The White Sox have been one of the biggest disappointments in the majors leagues but they haven’t had All-Star shortstop or leadoff hitter Tim Anderson for much of it. He is likely to be activated from the injured list and back in the lineup Tuesday.

Anderson, 30 in June, has been on the injured list since April 11 due to a knee sprain. He was initially estimated to miss between two and four weeks, so it’s still possible for him to come back in that time frame. One of the club’s better players, his absence has corresponded with a dreadful downward slide in the standings. The Sox were 5-6 when he hit the shelf but have won only a couple of games since. Since the start of the 2020 season, the Sox are 150-112 when Anderson is in the starting lineup and 66-85 when he is not.

The club is obviously better when Anderson is a part of it. Dating back to the start of 2019, he has 51 home runs and 58 stolen bases. His .317/.346/.471 batting line in that time amounts to a wRC+ of 122. Anderson will reclaim the starting job at shortstop once activated, pushing Elvis Andrus back to the keystone and Lenyn Sosa out of a regular role.

Closer Liam Hendriks, who ranks third in MLB since 2020 with 89 saves, announced in January that he had been diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, completed his rounds of chemotherapy on 4/5 and announced he is in remission on 4/20. He could be back in a few weeks.

Michael Kopech is scheduled to start for Chicago (0-3, 7.01). Kopech took the loss last Wednesday, allowing four runs on six hits and two walks over five innings against the Blue Jays. He struck out four. It was another disappointing outing for Kopech, who allowed four runs while matching a season low with four strikeouts. In five starts this year, Kopech has made it through six innings once.

Minnesota counters with Joe Ryan (5-0, 2.81). He allowed one earned in seven innings last Tuesday in a 6-2 defeat of the Yankees. He’s sporting a 2.81 ERA and a 36/4 K/BB ratio through 32 innings. Ryan has replaced his slider with a sweeper this season and he’s gone with a splitter over a changeup and the results have been tremendous.

MLB Betting Pick: Twins

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READ MORE: Top MLB Betting Picks of the Week – May 8th, 2023