The action-packed schedule in the MLB continues on Tuesday, August 16, with 15 games, and one of them is an intriguing divisional clash, so make sure you take a look at the best Rays vs. Yankees betting pick and odds.
Tampa Bay and New York will play the second of a three-game series at Yankee Stadium, and the Yankees are -190 moneyline favorites on FanDuel Sportsbook, while the total is set at 7.5 runs. These American League East foes have met ten times before this series and the Yankees won seven. Game 1 of this series will be played on Monday night, at the time of writing.
Rays beat the Orioles in a direct wildcard battle
The Tampa Bay Rays lost the opening game of the series to the Baltimore Orioles but responded with two wins in the next two games. It was a direct duel for a wildcard spot, and with those two victories, the Rays managed to stay ahead of the Orioles.
Randy Arozarena smashed a three-run homer in the third inning, while Taylor Walls scored a couple of runs as Tampa Bay secured a 4-1 home win over Baltimore. Drew Rasmussen (7-4) was on the brink of recording a perfect game, but he did allow a hit in the 9th and then a run on his wild pitch. Still, Rasmussen impressed with seven strikeouts and no walks in 8.1 innings. Jason Adam got his 6th save of the season.
Jeffrey Springs (4-3) will start on the mound for the 16th time this year when he faces the Yankees on Tuesday. The 29-year-old lefty has an excellent 2.56 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, and a 91/18 K/BB ratio across 84.1 innings.
Yankees lost the leading place in the AL
The New York Yankees are not the team with the best record in the American League anymore. They are going through the worst period of the campaign after losing nine of 11 games prior to this series. The Houston Astros overtook the Yanks at the top and it doesn’t seem it’ll change anytime soon.
New York lost four consecutive series, most recently to the arch-rivals Boston Red Sox. The Yankees even failed to score in the latest 3-0 defeat as Michael Wacha dominated their batters – New York registered miserable two hits in this loss. Jameson Taillon (11-3) took a loss after surrendering three runs on six hits with four strikeouts and no walks in 7.0 innings.
Nestor Cortes (9-3) is getting his 22nd start of the season as he takes on the Rays on Tuesday. The 27-year-old left-hander is having a breakthrough campaign and will carry a rock-solid 2.67 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, and a 125/29 K/BB ratio into this duel.
Trends:
Tampa Bay:
- 5-11 in the last 16 road games
- 0-6 in the last six road games vs. a left-handed starter
New York:
- 39-13 in the last 52 home games
- 28-13 in the last 41 vs. American League East rivals
Tampa Bay Rays vs. New York Yankees Pick
Tampa Bay is not batting well against southpaws; not only have the Rays lost each of their last six road games against lefties starters, but they are averaging only 3.84 runs per game against them. On the other hand, the Yankees are excellent against left-handers with .243 BA and 5.93 runs per nine innings. Springs lost in his previous start against the Yankees, while Cortes is 2-1 in three starts against the Rays this year. It’s time for the Yankees to finally respond offensively, and I am backing them to do it on Tuesday.
Pick: Take the Yankees -1.5 Run Line at +120
The Total
Springs has a fantastic record against New York’s batters as he allowed just .120 BA, .139 OBP, and .165 SLG against them in 37 at-bats. Cortes is having more problems against the Rays, but I don’t expect him to allow more than two or three runs here. Under is 5-2 in the Rays’ last seven games vs. a left-handed starter, Under is 4-0 in the Yankees’ previous four vs. American League East rivals, while Under is 4-0-1 in New York’s last five overall.
Pick: Go Under 7.5 runs at -110
