We can pretty much guarantee the smart fans in New York are tempering their enthusiasm right now. Yes, the Yankees took two of three from the Boston Red Sox (at Fenway Park, no less) to open up a 7.5-game lead on Boston in the American League East. But fans in the Big Apple have seen the Mets cough up this kind of lead late in the season. And the Red Sox are still in position to take the AL Wild Card (one game up on the Texas Rangers at press time) and face the Yankees yet again in the playoffs - where anything can happen and usually does.

We'll check in on all four of the above teams in this week's betting preview. All stats are at press time, and the latest odds are always available at Bodog Sports.

Series: Texas Rangers at New York Yankees

It doesn't get much better than the Yankees right now at 78-46 and 7.87 units in the black. They're 14-4 in August after taking out Boston and 27-9 since the All-Star Game. New York has the most potent hitting in the majors (.858 OPS) since the break; the pitching staff has improved to No. 7 overall with a 3.98 team ERA, but it looks like Game 1 starter Joba Chamberlain (3.98 ERA, 1.46 WHIP) might finally be running out of gas after giving up four runs in each of his last three starts. The Rangers (69-54, 17.88 units) are 5.5 games behind the Los Angeles Angels in the AL West after dropping four of their last six games.

Series: Chicago White Sox at Boston Red Sox

The Red Sox (70-53, 3.20 units) have lost six of their last seven against the Yankees, but if you take those games out of the equation, the Sox are 11-5 since July 30. Pitching has been a problem in Boston; however, Tim Wakefield (4.31 ERA, 1.38 WHIP) will be making his return from the disabled list Wednesday against the White Sox, replacing Brad Penny (5.61 ERA, 1.53 WHIP) in the rotation. Chicago (63-61, 0.60 units) is on an eight-game zigzag pattern that’s due to zag toward a win in Monday’s series opener.

Series: New York Mets at Chicago Cubs

We dumped on the Mets (57-67, -8.34 units) in last week's column, and they responded by losing five of their next seven games, all at home. Things have gotten bad enough in Flushing that owner Fred Wilpon was asked by reporters whether GM Omar Minaya would be back in 2010. "Absolutely. That's a fact," Wilpon replied. Minaya can't be blamed for the injuries the Mets have suffered this year. Lou Piniella was also asked whether he'd return to the Cubs next year (62-60, -11.04 units) following their sale to the Ricketts family. Piniella said he's planning to, but first he has to turn the Cubs around after an uninspired 2-5 West Coast swing.

So get ready for this week's lineup and don't forget to check the Bodog Sportsbook for the latest lines!