Cash’s Rays strive to slow down Yankees
With just a few weeks left in the regular campaign, the Bronx is, rather surprisingly, burning with playoff fever.
The Yankees enter tonight’s matchup against Tampa Bay riding a five-game winning streak. Online sports book Bovada.lv expects Joe Girardi’s troops to stay hot, too, giving them odds of -145 to prevail. Conversely, the Rays are considered +125 underdogs. The over/under run figure sits at 8.5.
Thanks to a superb start to the month, New York (74-65) finds itself right in the thick of the American League wild-card race. In fact, the team owns a 22-13 record since trading All-Star Carlos Beltran on Aug. 1 and officially committing to a youth movement. Gary Sanchez (.336 batting average) and Ronald Torreyes (.296) continue to lead the offensive charge, while Luis Cessa’s providing admirable work as a rotation fill-in.
Michael Pineda (6-11, 5.10 ERA) was supposed to be a season-long stalwart for Girardi. Nonetheless, this evening’s hurler has been prone to significant lapses in concentration. Pineda’s also accustomed to getting ravaged by Tampa Bay (59-80). The 27-year-old holds a 2-4 mark with a 1.32 WHIP in 10 career meetings with Kevin Cash’s club.
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As for the visiting crew, Blake Snell (5-7, 3.39) draws the nod. The well-regarded prospect made his MLB debut at Yankee Stadium on April 23, permitting a run and two hits in five innings. Most recently, he limited the Blue Jays to one run and a pair of base knocks across six frames.
New York’s obviously itching to return to the October stage. Yet Pineda’s penchant for serving up big numbers to the Rays renders us pessimistic here. Side with Snell & Co.
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