Best MLB Player Props & Picks: Yankees vs. Rays (Saturday)
Gerrit Cole and Drew Rasmussen take the mound as the New York Yankees face the Tampa Bay Rays in Saturday's ALDS opener. The starting pitchers provide a natural starting point for evaluating strikeout props, but hits, total bases and run-production markets also deserve a closer look. Our Yankees vs. Rays player props and picks break down the matchup to help you find the best MLB betting opportunities for Game 1.
Here are our top MLB player props and picks for Yankees vs. Rays.
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Today’s Best MLB Player Props & Bets: Yankees vs. Rays
Here are the best MLB player prop bets for today’s game Yankees vs. Rays.
New York Yankees vs. Tampa Bay Rays
New York is getting a lot of betting support after clobbering the Red Sox by a combined score of 18-to-2 in the two-game sweep. But the Yankees were only winning those games by 2-0 or 1-0 when Boston went to the bullpen early, and I'm limiting this wager to the first five innings since Tampa Bay's bullpen ERA ranked 10th among the 12 playoff teams.
Perhaps the Yankees merely faced a Red Sox team that reverted to their 32-46 start, not the one that ripped off 32 wins in 37 games after that. Tampa Bay was the best home team in the American League by a full six games.
After the All-Star break, Tampa Bay went 12-0 in Drew Rasmussen's 12 starts, covering the run line seven times (including his final start against the Yankees, a 6-1 victory).
I'm not doubting a New York offense that got hot and exploded for 18 runs in the sweep of the Red Sox. But much of the Yankees' success in that series came against Boston's left-handed pitching, as they went 15-for-34 with two extra-base hits, five RBI and a 5:2 K:BB ratio against Red Sox southpaws.
Rasmussen was one of four pitchers this season with at least five starts of seven or more shutout innings. He went 7-0 in his first seven starts after the All-Star break with 62 strikeouts and a 2.07 ERA, the third-lowest ERA in the Majors in that span. Rasmussen's .577 OPS allowed is the fourth-lowest among all pitchers since 2023 (minimum 350 innings). He had a historic season, becoming the third pitcher in Rays history to record 15 wins and a sub-2.75 ERA in a single season. I expect him to cruise early in this game.
Pick: Rays First Five Innings Moneyline (-150)
More MLB Player Props & Bets for Yankees vs. Rays
We compiled several projection sources to come up with consensus projections. We then compared these projections to the prop bet odds from the sportsbooks to give you the best MLB player props, bets and picks. Let’s take a look at the top player props, bets, odds, rankings, and picks for Yankees vs. Rays.
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