On Thursday, the Red Sox open up a four-game series against the Yankees at home. This could be viewed by many as one of the most important series of the baseball season. Despite the Red Sox going 6-4 in their last 10 games, both teams have cooled off a bit, which has kept the Yankees five games back of Boston in the AL East.

The division is, to be frank, a nightmare to play in right now. To open this series, the Yankees will have CC Sabathia on the mound. Sabathia is 6-4 this season with a 3.53 ERA. He's going up against one of the scariest lineups in baseball. The Red Sox order boasts J.D. Martinez and Mookie Betts, both of whom are having outstanding seasons. Andrew Benintendi is also having a solid year at the plate for the Red Sox. Winning this series would be huge for them, and it all starts with the first game.

Pitching for the Red Sox will be another lefty, Brian Johnson. Despite only being 1-3 this season, he's kept his ERA under four and been bounced around from the rotation to the bullpen. This first game will be huge for the Yankees, with Rick Porcello and new acquisition Nathan Eovaldi -- who looked dominant in his Red Sox debut -- following in the next two games. It's a Yankee lineup that's missing Gary Sanchez and Aaron Judge, but they'll hope that some of their other stars -- including Gleyber Torres and Giancarlo Stanton -- can pick up some of the slack.

How to watch Yankees vs. Red Sox 

  • Date: Thursday, Aug. 1
  • Time: 7:10 p.m. ET
  • Location: Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts
  • Starting pitchers: Yankees' CC Sabathia (6-4, 3.53 ERA) vs. Red Sox' Brian Johnson (1-3, 3.45 ERA)
  • TV channel: YES Network and NESN
  • Streaming: Fans in local markets can stream on fuboTV (Try for free) 
  • Live stats: GameTracker
  • Picks: Check SportsLine's MLB pick sheet for all your daily odds.