The New York Yankees (28-19) host the Texas Rangers (25-24) on Thursday, May 22, 2025. First pitch from Yankee Stadium is scheduled for 12:35 p.m. ET; the game will be broadcast on MLB Network.
The Yankees and Rangers finish their series with an early afternoon game in the Bronx. Taking the hill for New York is southpaw Carlos Rodon; Texas will give Nathan Eovaldi the ball. New York is a -165 moneyline favorite with the total sitting at 7.5 runs.
Find my Thursday Rangers vs Yankees prediction more.
My Rangers vs Yankees Prediction
- Rangers vs Yankees pick: Under 7.5 (play to 7)
My Rangers vs Yankees best bet is the game total Under 7.5. Make sure to find the best odds by checking our live MLB odds page.
Rangers vs Yankees Odds & Game Information
| Rangers Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+1.5 -165 | 7.5 +100o / -120u | +135 |
| Yankees Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-1.5 +140 | 7.5 +100o / -120u | -160 |
Rangers vs Yankees Projected Starting Pitchers
| Carlos Rodon (NYY) | Stat | Nathan Eovaldi (TEX) |
|---|---|---|
| 5-3 | W-L | 4-2 |
| 1.0 | fWAR (FanGraphs) | 2.1 |
| 3.17/2.87 | ERA /xERA | 1.61/3.19 |
| 3.62/3.29 | FIP / xFIP | 2.19/2.62 |
| 0.99 | WHIP | 0.77 |
| 20.3% | K-BB% | 24.6% |
| 43.8% | GB% | 50% |
| 104 | Stuff+ | 98 |
| 96 | Location+ | 106 |
Sean Paul’s Rangers vs Yankees Preview
Why The Yankees Can Win: Rodon Rolls
When Gerrit Cole went down with season-ending Tommy John Surgery in Spring Training, the pressure on Carlos Rodon intensified. He's responded by putting together his best season in Pinstripes, posting a 3.17 ERA with a 2.87 xERA and 3.62 FIP.
The Achilles' heel for Rodon is the long ball. He's gone four of his nine outings without surrendering a homer, and he's allowed one earned run in 24 2/3 innings through those four outings.
Rodon ranks in the 80th percentile or better in xERA, xBA, whiff rate and strikeout rate. Plus, he’s in the 61st percentile in average exit velocity and 71st in hard-hit percentage. That’s all a formula to believe Rodon finally found the secret sauce.
The Yankees' offense is one of the best in baseball, but if Jacob deGrom can quiet them, so can Eovaldi. Great pitching is tough to hit.
Plus, the weather looks very unfriendly for hitters, as it'll be in the low 50s throughout the game with showers sprinkled during the game.
Once Rodon is out, he'll turn the game over to one of the top bullpens in MLB.
New York ranks 11th with a 3.41 bullpen ERA, but its 3.21 FIP ranks third in baseball.
Luke Weaver has been a lockdown closer, posting a 0.44 ERA in 20 2/3 innings. The difference maker is Devin Williams, who Weaver stole the closing spot from a few weeks ago.
Williams hasn't allowed a run in nine of his last 10 outings — he gives the Yankees another weapon to shut down offenses late.
Why The Rangers Can Win: Nasty Nate
It’s unusual for pitchers to improve with age. That’s not the case for the now-35-year-old Nathan Eovaldi, who is firmly in the AL CY Young race with a 1.61 ERA and dazzling 2.19 FIP entering Thursday.
He’s also done a brilliant job improving his K/9 to 9.54 and dropping his BB/9 to 1.17. That marks the second-best K/9 of his career and the best BB/9 of his lengthy MLB career
After firing their hitting coach, the Rangers' offense hasn't gotten much better. The biggest issue is they don't have Corey Seager, who's in his second IL stint of the year, while Marcus Semien and Adolis Garcia are putting forth non-competitive ABs.
Texas fired its hitting coach on May 5 — it ranks 17th with a 98 wRC+ since that date. As it turns out, there isn't much a coach can do if hitters just aren't hitting.
The Rangers are also among the more home-run-reliant teams in baseball, hitting .228 with a .300 OBP and 20 homers in their last 14 games. The Rangers scored three runs on Wednesday, all via the homer — two from Jake Burger and one from Sam Haggerty.
With the weather being frigid, the balls won't carry very much. Couple that with Rodon being one of the top pitchers in the American League, and it'll be tough for the Rangers to scratch runs across.
The Rangers have 13 home runs against left-handed pitching this year, but it is really nine if you subtract the three from Seager.
Jonah Heim, Wyatt Langford, Jake Burger and Josh Jung combined for eight of the nine homers, but keep an eye on Heim's status for Thursday. He left Wednesday's game with a hand injury, so he could get the finale off.
That adds to my concern with Texas here. If that trio of right-handers can't get to Rodon, he'll mow them down.
How To Make Rangers vs Yankees Picks
The total sits at 7.5 and I can't see either team scoring enough to push the game over.
It'll be an old-school pitchers' duel with ugly weather. Texas tends to favor lower-scoring game due to its offensive issues. No pitcher is better for a pitchers duel than Eovaldi, who allowed one run or fewer in five straight outings with three or fewer hits in three of five.
As long as the Rangers don't hit a bunch of homers, this feels like the ideal under spot on a getaway day.
Pick: Under 7.5 (play to 7)
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Moneyline
I have no play on the moneyline.
Run Line (Spread)
I have no play the on the run line.
Over/Under
My bet for this game is Under 7.5.
