The Tampa Bay Rays (29-9) take on the New York Yankees (21-17) as they begin a four game series Thursday night at Yankee Stadium. This game will continue our MLB odds series as we hand out a Rays-Yankees prediction and pick while letting you know how to watch.
The Rays still have the best record in baseball, but they are starting to slip a little bit. They have won six of their last 10, but lost their last two. They were in Baltimore for their last series and lost two of three games. This was not the fault of their pitching staff though. Coming into that series, Tampa Bay was the best offense in baseball. However, they managed to score only six run in the entire series. Offenses are going to slump a little bit, so there is nothing to worry about long-term. Tampa Bay will look for their offense to get hot again over the weekend, though.
The Yankees are four games over .500, but sit last in the AL East division. It is the toughest division in baseball, so they can not afford to be losing multiple games in a series often. Luckily, the Yankees got to host the Oakland Athletics in the beginning of the week. New York was able to sweep the Athletics pretty easily as they outscored Oakland 28-10. With Aaron Judge back in the lineup, the Yankees hope to steal a few from Tampa Bay and climb in the AL East standings.
These two teams met just last week. The Rays were able to take two of three from New York during that series at Tropicana Field. Wander Franco and Randy Arozarena had four hits each for the Rays in the three games. Tampa Bay was able to slug four home runs and hit nine doubles in the three games, as well. For New York, Harrison Bader collected six hits while D.J LeMahieu had five of his own. Bader homered twice in the series and the Yankees had 11 extra base hits as a team. The four game set beginning Thursday night should be a good one.
The starting pitchers for game one are Drew Rasmussen and Domingo German.
Here are the Rays-Yankees MLB odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
MLB Odds: Rays-Yankees Odds
Tampa Bay Rays: -1.5 (-128)
New York Yankees: +1.5 (-154)
Over: 8.5 (-115)
Under: 8.5 (-105)
How To Watch Rays vs. Yankees
TV: Bally Sports Sun, Yes Network
Stream: MLB TV Subscription
Time: 7:05 PM ET/4:05 PM PT
*Watch MLB games LIVE with fuboTV (click for a free trial)*
Why The Rays Could Cover The Spread
Rasmussen is having a pretty good start to his season. He has seven starts on the year and has only given up runs in three of them. In two of those game, he did not make it out of the fifth as he got hit around a littl bit. In the three games he has given up runs, Rasmussen has allowed eight hits or more. He does have a start against the Yankees already, though. In that start, Rasmussen went 5 2/3 innings and allowed just two hits and struck out six. The Yankees did not have Judge in that game, but Rasmussen was very good nonetheless. If he can have another start like that, the Rays will cover the spread.
Why The Yankees Could Cover The Spread
German has some unique looking stats. His ERA is over 4.00, but his WHIP is below 1.00. That is not something you see often, but it tells you he does a good job keeping people off base. The only problem is when he does get hit, he gets hit hard. As long as he stays away from the middle of the plate, he will have a good game.
German has a start against the Rays already this season. In fact, it was the same game Rasmussen pitched. In that start, German went five innings, struck out five and allowed two runs on four hits. German exited the game with the Yankees down 2-0, but anytime a pitcher gives up less than three, he has done his job. If German can have another start like that, the Yankees offense should be able to back him up enough.
Final Rays-Yankees Prediction & Pick
This game should be a close one. There are two good pitchers on the mound and it is an division game. Whenever teams from the same division play, it is a little bit more competitive than usual. Expect this game to be decided in the seventh or eighth inning and remain close the whole time. The Yankees should be able to cover this spread.
Final Rays-Yankees Prediction & Pick: Yankees +1.5 (-154), Under 8.5 (-105)
Follow Us
Subscribe