The Tampa Bay Rays host the New York Yankees on August 19, 2025. First pitch from George M. Steinbrenner Field is scheduled for 7:35 p.m. EDT; the game will be broadcast on FDSSUN.
The Yankees head to Tampa Bay to begin a quick two-game set at the Yankees' Spring Training facility. New York enters as a -137 moneyline favorite.
Read our Yankees vs Rays prediction and MLB pick below.
My Yankees vs Rays Prediction
- Yankees vs Rays Picks: Yankees ML (-150 or better)
My Yankees vs Rays best bet is on New York's ML. Make sure to find the best odds by checking our live MLB odds page.
Yankees vs Rays Odds
| Yankees Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-1.5 +120 | 8.5 -105o / -115u | -145 |
| Rays Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+1.5 -145 | 8.5 -105o / -115u | +120 |
Yankees vs Rays Projected Starting Pitchers
| LHP Carlos Rodon (NYY) | Stat | RHP Shane Baz (TBR) |
|---|---|---|
| 12-7 | W-L | 8-9 |
| 2.2 | fWAR (FanGraphs) | 1.6 |
| 3.25 / 3.17 | ERA / xERA | 4.93 / 3.73 |
| 3.85 / 3.82 | FIP / xFIP | 4.33 / 3.84 |
| 1.06 | WHIP | 1.33 |
| 2.8 | K-BB% | 2.8 |
| 40.6 | GB% | 47.6 |
| 104 | Stuff+ | 107 |
| 96 | Location+ | 98 |
Sean Paul’s Yankees vs Rays Preview
Tampa Bay Rays Betting Preview: Ain't No Sunshine
To call the Tampa Bay Rays' recent stretch "ugly" would be an understatement.
Before a dreadful 2-8 stretch in late July and early August, the Rays felt in the mix for a playoff spot. After that, the Rays won three of their past four series, but they still sit at just 61-64.
Taking the mound for Tampa Bay is Shane Baz, who is very fadeable. Over his past seven outings, Baz has been tagged with a loss in six of them, while posting a 6.51 ERA in 37 1/3 innings. He's still tallying well over a strikeout per inning in that span. The issue is that the bases are always full, as he has a 1.55 WHIP.
That said, Baz has a 4.93 ERA with a 3.73 xERA and 4.33 FIP. In totality, he's pitching better than his numbers say. Things are just trending in the wrong direction.
The Rays' bats have completely fallen off the face of the earth lately. They rank 27th among MLB lineups with a 77 wRC+ and 29th with a 27.5% strikeout rate.
Nobody in the Rays lineup is hitting besides Junior Caminero, Brandon Lowe, or Yandy Diaz. Caminero has cracked eight homers in August, while Lowe has five. But with the Yankees trotting out a left-hander, it'll neutralize Lowe, who is hitting .211 with three homers versus southpaws.
They have 15 players with 10+ at-bats this month, and all of them, besides that trio and the speedy but non-powerful Chandler Simpson, have a wRC+ below 80.
New York Yankees Betting Preview: Perfect Formula to Succeed
The aforementioned left-hander for the Yankees is 2025 All-Star Carlos Rodon.
It's been quite the shift seeing Rodon transition from a two-pitch pitcher who touched 98-to-100 MPH with ease in his latter years in Chicago and in San Francisco, to a five-pitch pitcher who lives around 92-to-95 MPH on his fastball.
Rodon boasts a strong 3.25 ERA, complemented by a 3.17 xERA, but his 3.85 FIP is a bit more worrisome. Despite the dip in velocity, Rodon is punching out 10.06 batters per nine, which is .3 higher than last year.
However, Rodon is walking 3.56 batters per nine, but has cut his HR/9 from 1.59 to 1.17. In all, the transformation from Rodon seems to be him wanting to limit homers, and it's worked. That'll be just fine against this offensively starved Rays club.
The Yankees' lineup has the right formula to face Baz. They rank 13th among MLB lineups with 102 wRC+ in August, but nobody in the sport walks more than New York. And as we know, Baz is more than willing to walk batters.
The lineup isn't at full bore, as Giancarlo Stanton had just one at-bat in the Yankees series versus the Cardinals after a tough recovery from playing three games in the outfield the prior series. We'll see if Aaron Boone wants to test Stanton in the outfield, but I doubt he's willing to risk injury, given that Aaron Judge has to DH due to his elbow issue.
Still, the lineup is performing well, even with Judge hitting .229 in August and Stanton mostly a pinch-hitter. That's because Ben Rice is finally seeing his luck turn around, posting a 148 wRC+ this month, and Trent Grisham has a 122 wRC+.
Yankees vs Rays Prediction, Betting Analysis
I'm taking the Yankees ML up to -150 here.
This Rays team is very fade-worthy and seems to be limping into the season's final month.
Rodon has the strikeout stuff to dominate this Tampa Bay lineup, and Baz is a total mess right now. The advantage in the three main areas — lineup, starting pitcher, and bullpen — favors the Bronx Bombers.
Pick: Yankees ML (-150 or better)
Moneyline
I'll take the Yankees to -150 here.
Run Line (Spread)
No play.
Over/Under
No play.
Yankees vs Rays Betting Trends
