Tampa Bay Rays vs New York Yankees Prediction, 4/18/2021 MLB Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Tampa Bay Rays vs New York Yankees

Date: Sunday, April 18, 2021

Location: Yankee Stadium in Bronx, NY

TV: YES

Odds/Point Spread: Tampa Bay (-123) New York (+113)

Ryan Yarbrough and the Tampa Bay Rays (7-8, 3rd in AL East) head to Yankee Stadium on Sunday where they'll take on the New York Yankees (5-9, 5th in AL East). The odds on this contest have the Rays coming in at -123 and the Yankees are at +113. The total has been set at 8.5. The starting pitchers are Ryan Yarbrough and Gerrit Cole.

The Rays have accrued 28 two-baggers as a team and have hit 13 baseballs out of the park. Tampa Bay is slugging .371 and have been called out on strikes 141 times, while taking a walk on 52 occasions. As a unit, the Tampa Bay Rays are notching 4.1 runs per outing, which has them at 21st in MLB. They have recorded 53 RBI's as well as 107 hits this year, and their average at the plate is sitting at .225. They have 58 runs and hold an on-base percentage of .312.

The Rays hold a team earned run average of 4.67 this year (22nd in MLB), and the staff has struck out 133 batters. They have walked 40 players from the other team and their FIP comes in at 3.54 as a unit this year. They have a strikeout to walk ratio of 3.33 and the pitching staff has a team WHIP of 1.31. Rays pitchers have given up 14 home runs in addition to 76 runs in total (29th in MLB).

Rays relief pitchers have entered the game with players on base 16 times and also have had 26 appearances in high leverage situations. The relievers have racked up 7 holds on the year (12th in MLB). The Rays relief pitchers have a save percentage of 42.9% and stepped onto the hill in 14 save situations. They have earned 3 saves for the season and have blown 4 of 7 chances to get a save. The relief pitchers have inherited 20 runners over the course of the season with 30.0% of them ended up scoring. The Rays have sent 45 relief pitchers to the hill for the season.

Yarbrough has pitched in 361 innings and has totaled 300 K's so far in his career. His earned run average is 4.06 (163 earned runs allowed) and he has a WHIP of 1.168. He has surrendered 338 base knocks (8.4 hits per 9 innings) and has 84 walks. Yarbrough (28-18 career mark) has a FIP of 3.83 and he has faced 1,500 hitters in the majors.

The New York Yankees have accumulated an on-base percentage of .306 and a batting average of .222 this season. They have been called out on strikes on 116 occasions (21st in MLB) and have a total of 95 hits. New York has 14 long balls so far this year to go along with 47 runs batted in. The Yankees hold a slugging percentage of .360 and they have an average of 3.85 runs per outing (24th in baseball). They have 17 doubles, while walking 50 times and putting up 50 runs.

The Yankees are sitting with a team WHIP of 1.171 in addition to having a FIP of 3.62 as a unit for the year. They come in at 15th in the league as a staff in total hits relinquished with 103. The New York pitching staff have relinquished 54 runs over the course of the season while having an ERA of 3.46 (45 earned runs surrendered). Their K/BB ratio sits at 4.32 (147 strikeouts vs 34 walks). They have allowed 17 long balls and they concede 4.15 runs per 9 innings (11th in MLB).

New York relief pitchers have an inherited score percentage of 18.2% out of their 11 inherited base runners. Their relief pitchers have stepped onto the hill 16 times in high leverage situations and on 10 occasions with runners on. With 6 save situations, the Yankees have earned 4 holds and also 0 blown saves. They sit at 1st in baseball with a save rate of 100.0%, and they have dispatched 42 relievers to the hill this year. New York has called on relief pitchers to enter the contest in 2 save opportunities and they have come away with 2 saves.

In his MLB career, Cole has allowed 1,099 base knocks while he has totaled 1,459 strikeouts in 1,286 innings pitched. Cole (103-55 mark in his career) has earned a 3.17 ERA and has surrendered 7.7 hits per 9 innings. He has conceded a total of 453 ER's while holding a WHIP of 1.115 and being the owner of a FIP of 3.1. He has a K/BB ratio of 4.36 and he has faced 5,201 opposing hitters during his career.

Who will win tonight's MLB game against the spread?

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Tampa Bay (-123)

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