MLB Odds, Picks, Predictions for Yankees vs. Rays: Bet New York as Underdog (May 27)

Yankees vs. Rays Odds

The New YorkYankees enter play Friday night with a 32-13 record, the best in all of baseball. The Tampa Bay Rays come into Friday with a 26-18 record, five and a half games behind the Yankees in the American League East division.

Here we have a starting pitching matchup of Jeffrey Springs and Jameson Taillon in Tampa Bay. These two powerhouse division rivals will battle it out for supremacy all season long, but who will get the job done Friday night?

How Will the Yankees Lineup Adjust to Lefty Pitching?

Springs has been exceptional for the Rays as he has a 1.32 ERA in 27.1 innings this season. Springs has only made four starts for Tampa Bay, but they've all come in his last five appearances. In his last start, he completed five innings for the first time all season and struck out seven batters against the Orioles.

Springs' good ERA is mostly backed up by a 3.82 xFIP, 27% K% and 7% BB%. While the Yankees offense is one of the best in the league, Springs might be catching them at the right time as outfielder Giancarlo Stanton is currently on the injured list and infielder D.J. LeMahieu has missed the last two games with a wrist injury.

Outside of Aaron Judge, Anthony Rizzo and Gleyber Torres, none of the Yankees projected lineup have an ISO above .100 against left-handed pitching this year. Most of the Yankees lineup will be right-handed hitters, but Springs is allowing just an .043 ISO to right-handed batters this year.

Can Jameson Taillon Limit the Rays' Offense?

Taillon's ERA isn't quite as low as Springs' at 2.95 this season, but he's been very consistent. Taillon has gone at least 4.2 innings in all of his eight starts this season. He's been very stingy with free passes this year as his Walk Percentage is just 2% and that should serve him well here against a patient Rays lineup.

Tampa Bay also has a decent amount of power in the lineup as five hitters have an ISO above .180 against right-handed pitching this year in Kevin Kiermaier, Randy Arozarena, Ji-Man Choi, Manuel Margot, and Brett Phillips.

Only two of those hitters are right-handed (Arozarena and Margot) and they might have a better chance against Taillon, who has allowed a .189 ISO to right-handed batters this year compared to just a .107 ISO against left-handed batters.

Taillon went seven innings in his last start against the White Sox and with the injuries the Yankees are dealing with in their bullpen (Aroldis Chapman, Chad Green and Jonathan Loaisiga are on the injured list) he should have a long leash once again here.

Yesterday's starter for the Yankees, Nestor Cortes, pitched into the ninth inning against the Rays.

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Yankees-Rays Pick

This line is pretty efficient if you ask me, so I wouldn't make this your biggest bet of the day, but I like the Yankees here.

Springs is a solid pitcher and the Yankees are dealing with some injuries to their lineup and bullpen, but they still have the early frontrunner for the American League Most Valuable Player award, Aaron Judge, in the lineup and Taillon is a solid pitcher in his own right.

Tampa Bay is at home and the Trop has been a house of horrors for the Yankees in recent years, but they won going away last night and we're getting New York at +100 on the moneyline.

Pick: Yankees ML +110