Rays vs. Yankees Pick
Can the New York Yankees keep their AL East hopes alive tonight when they host the Tampa Bay Rays at 7:05PM ET?
According to oddsmakers at Bovada.lv, the Yankees are favored at home, as they are getting odds of -200 to win over the Rays. Tampa Bay is listed with a money line of +170 to win, while the over/under total has been set at 8.5 runs.
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The pitching matchup tonight has Jacob Faria (5-4, 3.33 ERA) on the mound for the Rays to face Sonny Gray (10-11, 3.31) of the Yankees. Gray has been somewhat shaky in recent starts, allowing eight runs over his last 18 innings. Gray has 151 strikeouts with 52 walks and a 1.17 WHIP this season. Faria has been pitching relief lately, allowing two runs over his last five innings of work. He has 82 strikeouts with 29 walks and a 1.15 WHIP.
The Yankees have won the first two games in this series, both by scores of 6-1. The wins have New York at 89-69 on the season and 49-28 at home. They are three games behind Boston in the AL East race with four to play. Tampa Bay is out of the playoff mix with a record of 76-82 overall and 37-43 on the road.
Wednesday’s win saw Luis Severino have another great start for the Yankees. He pitched six innings and allowed just one run to get his 14th victory of the year. Matt Andriese allowed three runs over five innings to fall to 5-5 on the season. Aaron Judge and Aaron Hicks each drove in a pair of runs to lead New York at the plate while Adeiny Hechavarria drove in the lone Tampa run on a home run.
The Yankees really can’t afford another loss if they want to win the division. Boston’s Magic Number is down to 2. Gray takes the mound tonight and he has looked very good against Tampa. In three starts, Gray is 1-1 against the Rays with a 2.66 ERA. Faria hasn’t fared well against the Yankees, allowing three runs over four innings in his lone start against New York this season. I expect New York to remain dialed in and focused on their business. They should be able to handle a Tampa team that has nothing to play for.
MLB DAILY PREDICTION: NEW YORK YANKEES -200