The New York Yankees host the Los Angeles Dodgers at Yankee Stadium on Saturday, July 18, with first pitch scheduled for 8:08 PM ET on FOX. It is about as marquee a regular-season matchup as the calendar offers — two of baseball's most storied franchises squaring off in the Bronx in the thick of summer. Ryan Weathers gets the ball for the Yankees, with Emmet Sheehan answering for Los Angeles. However this one plays out, it carries real weight heading into the second half of the 2026 season.
Probable Pitchers: Ryan Weathers vs. Emmet Sheehan
Ryan Weathers draws the start for New York. The left-hander has carved out a role in the Yankees rotation, and a start against the defending-caliber Dodgers lineup is as stiff a test as the schedule provides. How Weathers commands the strike zone and sequences his pitches against a disciplined Los Angeles offense will go a long way toward determining the outcome at Yankee Stadium.
Emmet Sheehan gets the assignment for the Dodgers. The right-hander has shown the ability to miss bats, and the Yankees lineup will need to work counts and put pressure on him early. Sheehan is not someone New York can afford to let cruise through the middle innings unchallenged.
Keys to Watch for the Yankees
- Weathers and first-inning execution: Getting through the top of the Dodgers order cleanly in the first inning sets the tone. Letting Los Angeles score early gives a Dodgers pitching staff very little to worry about.
- Yankees lineup vs. Sheehan: New York needs to avoid chasing early in counts. Working deep into at-bats against Sheehan opens the door to the Dodgers bullpen, which is where the Yankees want to be.
- Bullpen management: With the game on FOX and a national audience watching, both managers will be aggressive. Yankees skipper Aaron Boone's bullpen decisions in the middle innings could be the difference-maker.
- Home crowd factor: Yankee Stadium on a Saturday night against the Dodgers is one of the best atmospheres in baseball. The crowd will be loud from the first pitch — the Yankees need to feed off that energy early.
Broadcast Information
The game airs nationally on FOX. Yankees fans can also tune in on WFAN 660/101.9 FM in English or WADO 1280 in Spanish. Dodgers fans on the West Coast have Dodgers Radio AM570 and KTNQ 1020 in Spanish.
Prediction
This is a coin-flip matchup on paper, and both starting pitchers make it genuinely hard to call. That said, Yankee Stadium on a July Saturday night is one of the harder places in baseball to walk into as a road team. Give the Yankees the edge at home — a close, competitive game that New York finds a way to win in the later innings. Yankees 4, Dodgers 3.
