The Tampa Bay Rays battle the visiting New York Yankees on Thursday in MLB betting action at Tropicana Field.

The Rays will rely on James Shields to turn in a quality outing on the mound in this one, while CC Sabathia will be his counterpart for the Yankees. James Shields is 8-8 this season, and CC Sabathia is 14-4.



View NY Yankees vs Tampa Bay Odds and Stats.

Betting Line:
Bettors looking to side with the Rays in this one will find them as +120 underdogs on the MLB money line. Betting the over under instead? It was hovering near 7 at its open earlier today.

Power Rankings:
The Rays - Yankees odds would favor the Yankees if the lines were set according to our power ranks. Tampa Bay is rated No. 8 in the current American League Odds Shark poll, while New York is at No. 1 in the American League.



How They Match Up:
On offense, it's a battle between Tampa Bay and its American League No. 8-rated batting order, averaging 4.2 runs per nine innings, against the American League's No. 2 lineup of the Yankees at 5.1 runs per outing.

Comparing defensive stats, New York owns the American League's No. 4-rated road mark, allowing 3.7 runs per game on the highway. Tampa Bay, on the other hand, rates No. 13 in scoring at home.

Last time out for New York, they were a 4-0 Sportsbook as they battled the Rays on the road. Moneyline bettors who got the Yankees at +138 were rewarded, while the 4 combined runs moved the game UNDER for totals bettors. New York threw a shutout at Tampa Bay in their last outing, using a shutdown performance by Freddy Garcia to defeat Tampa Bay 4-0 on Wednesday.




New York Yankees Trends:
When playing on Thursday are 8-2
Before playing Oakland are 10-0
After playing Tampa Bay are 5-5
After a win are 6-4

Tampa Bay Rays Trends:
When playing on Thursday are 5-5
Before playing Kansas City are 4-6
After playing NY Yankees are 6-4
After a loss are 5-5

A few Yankees at Rays trends to consider:
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of NY Yankees' last 6 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of NY Yankees' last 6 games on the road
NY Yankees are 4-1 SU in their last 5 games
NY Yankees are 4-1 SU in their last 5 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Tampa Bay's last 7 games when playing NY Yankees
The total has gone UNDER in 13 of Tampa Bay's last 19 games at home
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Tampa Bay's last 6 games when playing at home against NY Yankees
Tampa Bay is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games


Next up:
NY Yankees home to Oakland, Friday, July 22
Tampa Bay at Kansas City, Friday, July 22