Rays vs. Yankees Prediction: Expert Picks, Odds, Stats & Best Bets – Friday, May 5, 2023

May 5, 2023, by Matt Rooney MLB Predictions

The New York Yankees (17-15) will look to Willie Calhoun, with homers in two straight games, to pull off an upset win over the Tampa Bay Rays (26-6) Friday at Tropicana Field. The Rays are -184 moneyline favorites for the game, which starts at 6:40 PM ET live on BSSUN.

Tampa Bay’s Yonny Chirinos and New York’s Jhony Brito have been named the starters for this contest.

Rays vs. Yankees Odds

Rays odds to win: -184
Yankees odds to win: +156
Spread: Rays -1.5
Total: 8.5 runs

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Game Time and Information

Date: Friday, May 5, 2023
Time: 6:40 PM ET
TV: BSSUN

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Who Will Win Rays vs. Yankees?

Rays and Yankees Betting Trends

The Rays are 26-5 in games they were listed as the moneyline favorite (winning 83.9% of those games).

Tampa Bay has a record of 14-1 when it has played as moneyline favorites with odds of -184 or shorter (93.3% winning percentage).

This season, the Yankees have won one out of the seven games in which they’ve been the underdog.

New York has played as an underdog of +156 or more once this season and lost that game.

The Rays have had an over/under set by oddsmakers 32 times, and have combined with opponents to go over the total in 17 of those games (17-12-3).

The Yankees’ games have gone over the total in 10 of their 32 chances.

Rays Stats & Insights

The Rays are the top-scoring team in MLB play averaging 6.6 runs per game (210 total).

The Tampa Bay Rays have hit an MLB-leading 67 home runs, averaging 2.1 per game.

The Rays lead MLB with a .278 batting average.

Tampa Bay’s 8.6 strikeouts per game rank 15th in baseball.

The nine strikeouts per nine innings put together by the Rays pitching staff ranks 12th in the majors.

Tampa Bay has the first-ranked team ERA across all MLB pitching staffs (2.87).

Yankees Stats & Insights

The Yankees rank 24th in the majors with 126 total runs scored this season.

New York has hit 39 homers this season, which ranks 10th in the majors.

The Yankees’ .228 batting average ranks 25th in the league this season.

New York has shown good bat-to-ball skills at the plate this season with the 10th-best strikeout rate (8.3 per game) among MLB offenses.

The Yankees strike out 9.7 batters per nine innings as a pitching staff, third-best in MLB.

New York has the seventh-best ERA (3.53) in the majors this season.

Rays Key Players to Watch

Chirinos starts for the first time this season for the Rays.

Yandy Diaz leads Tampa Bay in batting average (.327) and home runs (eight) this season, while also chipping in with 17 RBI.

Randy Arozarena leads Tampa Bay in home runs (eight) and runs batted in (29) this season while batting .325.

Wander Franco is slashing .298/.370/.545 this season for the Rays.

Josh Lowe has 27 hits and an OBP of .389 to go with a slugging percentage of .622 this season.

Yankees Key Players to Watch

The Yankees will hand the ball to Brito (2-3) for his seventh start of the season.

Gleyber Torres is batting .236 with four doubles, a triple, four home runs and 17 walks.

Anthony Rizzo has 14 RBI while batting .289. Both pace his team.

Anthony Volpe has three doubles, a triple, three home runs and 16 walks while batting .221.

DJ LeMahieu is hitting .260 with six doubles, a triple, three home runs and eight walks.

Rays and Yankees Injuries

Rays: Pete Fairbanks: 15 Day IL (Forearm), Tyler Glasnow: 15 Day IL (Oblique), Jeffrey Springs: 60 Day IL (Elbow), Shane Baz: 60 Day IL (Elbow), Shawn Armstrong: 60 Day IL (Neck), Andrew Kittredge: 60 Day IL (Elbow), Josh Fleming: day-to-day (Foot)

Yankees: Josh Donaldson: 10 Day IL (Hamstring), Aaron Judge: 10 Day IL (Hip), Giancarlo Stanton: 10 Day IL (Hamstring), Ben Rortvedt: 10 Day IL (Shoulder), Jonathan Loaisiga: 15 Day IL (Elbow), Carlos Rodón: 15 Day IL (Forearm), Luis Severino: 15 Day IL (Lat), Lou Trivino: 60 Day IL (Elbow), Luis Gil: 60 Day IL (Elbow), Frankie Montás: 60 Day IL (Shoulder), Scott Effross: 60 Day IL (Elbow), Tommy Kahnle: 60 Day IL (Biceps), Oswald Peraza: day-to-day (Ankle)