Rays vs. Yankees Pick
Can the New York Yankees keep the train rolling tonight when they once again host the Tampa Bay Rays at 7:05PM ET?
According to oddsmakers at Bovada.lv, New York is favored at home, as the Yankees are getting odds of -175 to win, while the Rays are listed with a money line of +160 to win. The over/under total for the game has been set at 9.5 runs.
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The pitching matchup tonight has Austin Pruitt (5-1, 6.25 ERA) on the mound for Tampa to face Masahiro Tanaka (7-9, 5.37) of the Yankees. Pruitt has only started one game this season, as he has done mostly relief. He has pitched 31.2 innings this season with 27 strikeouts and eight walks. Pruitt has a 1.74 WHIP on the season. Tanaka has struggled somewhat in recent outings, allowing at least three runs in his last three starts. On the year, Tanaka has 118 strikeouts with 27 walks and a 1.34 WHIP.
The Yankees opened the series on Thursday with a 6-5 win at home. New York has now won four straight and six of their last seven. The Yankees are 54-46 overall and 29-17 at home while Tampa Bay is 53-50 overall and 24-27 on the road.
Thursday’s game went 11 innings, as the Yankees had to score runs in the eighth and ninth innings just to force extras. The end came on Brett Gardner’s 18th home run of the season. He also has a triple in the win. Gary Sanchez had two hits and drove in a pair of runs for the Yankees as well. Corey Dickerson had his 19th home run of the season for Tampa while Evan Longoria also homered. Chris Archer pitched six innings and had 10 strikeouts, but took a no-decision.
I like the Yankees to keep rolling. Pruitt isn’t someone accustomed to pitching many innings, so the Rays are likely to have to use their pen a lot tonight after throwing seven different arms on Thursday. Tanaka hasn’t been sharp, but he still has gotten deep into games while giving his team a chance to win. He should get plenty of run support tonight and grab a victory.
MLB DAILY PREDICTION: NEW YORK YANKEES -175