The Tampa Bay Rays (16-9) and New York Yankees (16-8) will close out their three-game series at 1:05 p.m. ET at Yankee Stadium Thursday. We analyze the Rays-Yankees betting odds and lines, with MLB picks and best bets.
Rays at Yankees: Projected starting pitchers
RHP John Curtiss vs. LHP James Paxton
Curtiss is being used as the opener Thursday. He has pitched 6 1/3 innings in relief this season, going 1-0 with a 2.84 ERA.
- Curtiss has struck out seven batters in those 6 1/3 innings with no walks and five hits allowed.
- This will be Curtiss’ first start in his career, acting as the opener for Tampa Bay.
Paxton has made four starts this season but only pitched 15 1/3 innings in total, posting an ERA of 7.04.
- He has allowed at least three runs in all four of his starts and hasn’t pitched more than 6 1/3 innings in a single outing.
- Paxton is 3-1 with a 3.38 ERA in his career against the Rays (6 starts).
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Rays at Yankees: Key injuries
Get the latest injury news here.
Rays
- RP Jose Alvarado (shoulder) out
- OF Randy Arozarena (COVID-19) out
Yankees
- OF Aaron Judge (leg) out
- OF Giancarlo Stanton (hamstring) out
- RP Zack Britton (leg) questionable
- 2B DJ LeMahieu (thumb) out
Rays at Yankees: Odds, lines, picks and betting tips
MLB odds courtesy of BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports for a full list. Odds last updated at 11 a.m. ET.
Prediction
Rays 6, Yankees 4
Moneyline (ML)
The RAYS (+135) took the first two games of the series and will now be going for the sweep Thursday afternoon. They’re playing better baseball right now, having won four in a row. They’ve also gone 7-1 in their last eight games against the Yankees (-149).
Bet on the RAYS (+135) to win outright against Paxton, who hasn’t pitched very well this season. If the Rays can escape the first couple of innings with minimal damage, the bullpen should keep them in the game.
New to sports betting? A $10 bet on the Rays to win returns a profit of $13.50.
Run line/Against the spread (ATS)
The run line in this one is Yankees -1.5 (+135), with the Rays being +1.5 (-162). If you’re not comfortable taking the Rays to win straight up, this is a good opportunity with Tampa getting 1.5 runs.
The reward won’t be as large, but at -162, it’s still a bet worth making. Tampa Bay is 10-1 in its last 11 games with the only loss being a 12-4 drubbing against the Toronto Blue Jays. They’ll at least keep this one close; go with the RAYS +1.5 (-162).
Over/Under (O/U)
The Over/Under is set at 9. The total has gone Over in five of the Rays’ last seven games and that trend should continue with Paxton and Curtiss getting the nod as the starters.
Bet the OVER 9 (-121) and expect plenty of runs to be scored.
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