Rays vs Yankees Predictions, Odds & Player Props (May 12)
By George Nassios in MLB Baseball
Published:
- The Rays and Yankees play the second of a four game series on Friday, May 12th
- Tampa destroyed the Yankees, 8-2 in the series opener on Thursday evening
- Take a peek at the Rays vs Yankees predictions, odds, and player-prop picks below
Saddle in. That’s the message the Rays (30-9, 11-6 away) sent the Yankees (21-18, 14-9 home) and their fans as they pasted the Bronx Bombers 8-2 in their series opener on Thursday.
Game two of this four game series between the division rivals is on Friday, May 12th with the opening pitch scheduled for 7:05 pm ET. This game will be broadcast on Bally Sports Network as well as YES Network.
The Rays vs Yankees odds can be seen below as we also offer up our best bet and prediction for this matchup. We’ll also recommend some player props to target for some added value.
Rays vs Yankees Odds
| Team | Moneyline | Runline | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Rays | +150 | +1.5 (-140) | O 8 (-115) |
| New York Yankees | -175 | -1.5 (+120) | U 8 (-105) |
With one of the AL’s best hurlers on the mound for the Evil Empire, the Yankees are -175 moneyline favorites to respond with a victory after getting crushed in the first of this four game series.
Friday’s forecast is calling for a lovely evening for a ballgame in the Bronx with temperatures expected to be around 81 degrees with very mild wind.
Odds as of May 12th at DraftKings Sportsbook. Claim a DraftKings promo code to bet on Rays vs Yankees on May 12.Â
Tampa Bay vs New York Probable Pitchers
It looks like Trevor Kelley will get the call for the Rays on Friday. Don’t expect the righty to last too long, as this will likely be an “opener” style start for the Rays with Josh Fleming probable to get the bulk of the work in relief.
RH Trevor Kelley will be #Rays opener on Friday vs. #Yankees, LH Josh Fleming expected to work bulk innings
— Marc Topkin (@TBTimes_Rays) May 12, 2023
Kelley has only made one appearance so far this season, taking the loss in two innings of relief against the Blue Jays about a month ago. He allowed two runs in that one and couldn’t whiff a single batter.
Fleming pitched five innings in relief against the Yankees in his last appearance and got banged up, allowing two long balls and six earned runs. The Rays have been using Fleming quite a bit as their second pitcher, especially when using an opener. He’s actually only made one start this season, but has thrown at least three innings in each of his seven outings.
Struggling away from the confines of Tropicana Field this year, the southpaw has a 6.75 ERA and 2.04 WHIP when pitching on the road. A soft tossing lefty, we’ll see if he has better success this time around against one of the MLB lineups that has huge success with the long ball in the Bronx Bombers.
Kelley vs Cole Stats
| 0-1 | Record | 5-0 |
| 9.00 | ERA | 2.09 |
| 1.50 | WHIP | 1.01 |
| .250 | OBA | .197 |
| N/A | SO/W Ratio | 3.6 |
Ace Gerrit Cole is on the bunk for the Yanks and hopes to continue his terrific start, garnering himself plenty of attention in the Cy Young award odds.
He did struggle in his last outing against these same Rays. Showing their is no pitcher they fear, Tampa showed why people should take notice of them in the World Series odds, pounding Cole for eight hits and six runs in an 807 comeback win to close out their previous series against each other.
You can bet the Yankees workhorse will be out to prove that outing was an aberration to the norm and that he’ll be extra motivated to keep the Rays quiet on Friday.
Rays vs Yankees Player Props Picks
Wander Franco continues his terrific month at the plate as he had two more hits in the Rays win over the yanks on Thursday. He’s got hits in 10 of 11 games and is the best bet of any player available when it comes to hitting props so take him at -220 odds to get at least one hit. He had one single against Cole on the weekend.
"I'm feeling happy today!" 😃
Come along for a mic'd up BP with Wander Franco pic.twitter.com/9cLtKKUWdo
— Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) May 10, 2023
Speaking of Cole, he completely shut down the Rays through four on Sunday before the league’s best team got to him. Expect him to be more dialed in for this rematch and get off to a great start. Pick Cole to hold the Rays without a hit in the first inning at +110 odds.
Rays vs Yankees Predictions
Putting all preseason expectations and prediction aside, the Rays have shown that they deserve to be considered favorites in most matchups in the MLB odds against their divisional opponents, despite playing in the best division in baseball.
For this game though, pick the Yanks to get one back. New York has not dropped three consecutive contests to Tampa since the 2021 season and we don’t see it occurring here with their ace on the hill. Our prediction is to roll with the Yankees on the moneyline.
Pick: New York Yankees Moneyline (-175)
Sports Writer
George has had a lifelong love affair with sports and studying sports statistics since he was a kid. He graduated from Ryerson University with a Bachelor's Degree in Journalism and has worked in the sports & media industry ever since in various roles from writer to producer.
