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Rays vs Yankees: MLB Free Betting Pick Aug. 18

The New York Yankees (16-6) are the best team in MLB, but one team is hotter. The Tampa Bay Rays (14-9) trail the Yankees in the AL East by 2.5 games, but they’re streaking. The Rays have won eight of the last 10, which includes taking two out of three from NY in Tropicana Field. The upcoming three-game set at Yankee Stadium will likely have a playoff atmosphere. 

The Rays (+135) are favored by 1½ runs in the first game of the series, making the Yankees “home dogs.” The Yankees are 10-0 at home so far, so why bet against the Bronx Bombers here? Compelling evidence would need to be produced for a savvy sports bettor to make that type of decision. Perhaps the MLB betting odds for this game will shift before the first pitch? Let’s explore the keys to the matchup. 

Coming up Rays vs Astros
Maddie Meyer/Getty Images/AFP

Probable Starting Pitchers 

Rays’ SP Blake Snell enjoys a slight edge over the Yanks’ Masahiro Tanaka, regarding performance in 2020. However, both pitchers are in the process of wading deeper into each game they pitch. Snell followed up his 2018 Cy Young-Award winning season with a 6-8 record to go with a bloated 4.29 ERA in 2019. Will the real Snell please stand up? We’re gonna have a problem here. 

Tanaka had a mediocre 2019 season as well, going 11-9 with an ERA of 4.45. This season is the first time that Tanaka is showing an ERA under 3.00 since his first year with the Yankees, in 2014. Tanaka is currently recovering from a July 4 concussion after taking a line drive in a simulated game off the bat of Giancarlo Stanton to the head and is looking better each time he takes the mound. 

Matchup Edge

The edge almost belongs entirely to the Yankees here. There’s nothing here to suggest that the Rays will be the first team in 2020 to hand the Yankees a loss in the Bronx. 

Injury Updates

Well, having three of your top hitters out of the lineup will certainly hurt the Yankees. Leadoff man DJ LeMahieu and sluggers Aaron Judge and Stanton will both be on the shelf. LeMahieu is second in MLB with an eye-popping .411 average and Judge is tied for third in homers with nine. Stanton is an MVP-caliber player, when healthy. These injuries must be taken into consideration. 

All things considered, the Yankees are still in a strong position to win this game. “Murderer’s Row, The Relaunch” has plenty of depth and Clint Frazier has been filling in admirably for Judge. We’ll have the opportunity to witness utility player Miguel Andujar continue to blossom. Snell will keep the Yankees’ bats in check for a few innings, but look for them to blow it open in the middle innings. Tanaka will produce a quality start, and the Yankees win a close one, 5-4. 

BetUS Free MLB Pick: NY Yankees +1.5 (-155)  

 

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