Last night, the Tampa Bay Rays snapped a three-game losing streak with a 6-4 win over the New York Yankees, pushing the AL East lead to four after the result. On Wednesday evening, these teams square off once more as this four-game series continues at Tropicana Field. First pitch is at 6:40 p.m. ET.
Here’s a betting prediction and pick for this Yankees vs. Rays matchup courtesy of MLB odds and lines on DraftKings Sportsbook.
Yankees vs. Rays prediction, preview
New York Yankees
The Yankees’ cold streak continues after last night having gone 2-4 since the start of July, also keeping them at 2-8 over their last 10 games. Now, an overall +82 run differential and a 50-41 record certainly look good on the surface, however, the club’s recent slump at the plate has held them back significantly. This has largely been one of the most productive offenses in baseball on the year with 4.79 runs per game, but they’ve scored just 40 across their 13 games in the last two weeks, third fewest of any club. While an OPS of .735 also ranks eighth in the MLB with a slash line of .234/.316/.419, even that’s dipped to a miserable .531 with a .166 AVG over the same sample with an astoundingly high 31.6% K%. Even that’s a far cry from a 24.2% K% that sits fourth highest in baseball on the year with a 10.4% BB% to complement it. It seems the Yankees are desperate to escape this slump by any means necessary. If nothing else, the team’s power potential is still better than most, ranking first in ISO at .185 and pacing the MLB with 132 home runs. They also get the better side of the splits against a lefty tonight, slashing .242/.317/.431 for a .747 OPS.
RHP Gerrit Cole starts tonight with a 3-3 record across eight games this year. He’s bringing a 4.01 ERA, a 1.20 WHIP and 41 strikeouts in 42.2 IP to the table, and while a 5.6% BB% is excellent, he’s in the fourth percentile when it comes to whiff rate so far. The Yankees’ bullpen is still elite, with a 3.05 ERA that leads the MLB, a 1.19 WHIP and a 13.9% K-BB%.
Tampa Bay Rays
The Rays got back on the right foot last night with the win, meaning they’ve now taken 10 of their last 13 games in hand. The club remains atop the AL East at 53-36 and has a run differential of +33, averaging the lineup averages 4.53 runs per game. With a slash line of .257/.334/.396, the Rays have moved up to 12th in OPS at .730. Yes, it’s true that power is a major weak point with a .138 ISO that ties for dead last in baseball and just 87 homers, fourth fewest of any club. However, the plate approach more than makes up for it with an 18.9% K% that leads the MLB alongside a 9.5% BB%. Those are some excellent marks, as is an elevated .814 OPS over the last two weeks alongside a .213 ISO. Tonight, they also face another right-hander after slashing .263/.341/.414 for a .755 OPS in the split. The Rays are set up for success here.
LHP Shane McClanahan is having a very solid campaign with a 7-5 record, a 3.05 ERA, a 1.17 WHIP and 77 strikeouts across 79.2 IP. He’s forced ground balls at an above-average rate and has delivered 99th-percentile offspeed run value. The Rays’ bullpen comes in at an ERA of 4.34 that ranks 21st, plus a 1.26 WHIP and 12.9% K-BB%.
Yankees vs. Rays pick, best bet
DraftKings Sportsbook lists the Rays as -118 home favorites on the Moneyline tonight. The Yankees are underdogs with -102 odds to win outright on the road. The total sits at 7.5 combined runs as well.
Best Bet: TB Rays ML (-118)
The Yankees did put up four runs last night, but it wasn’t enough as they dropped another game. The batting order looks miserable out there at the moment in the midst of one of the worst slumps we’ve seen from a team in recent memory. As mentioned earlier, they’re at a sub-.600 OPS over the last two weeks and their line over the last month comes in at .669, which ranks 25th in baseball. With the K% way up from an already high mark, they’re hacking at just about everything to try and get out of this cold stretch. The Rays’ pitching can take advantage of that, and with better bats at the moment too, Tampa Bay ought to come out on top with a straight-up win tonight as well.
