The woes continue for the Yankees, who have allowed nine home runs in three games against the Rays in this four-game sets.
The All-Star break clearly didn’t serve the pitching rotation any rejuvenation; it’s proved it remains vulnerable to batted balls while opposing a Tampa Bay group that ranks among the bottom-five teams in MLB in hard-hit percentage.
Carlos Rodon attempts to shake the funk in Monday’s series finale. Rodon hasn’t provided bettors any feelings of security as of late, recording five losses in his last six starts along with a 9.67 ERA.
One of those losses was a meeting with the Rays on July 9, when he relinquished four earned runs in as many innings pitched.
This rough stretch dates us back to the Red Sox series in mid-June, which is exactly when the Yankees’ season turned on a dime.
Since then, they have allowed a higher home runs per nine innings rate than any other team and opposing bats are averaging .313 on balls hit in play.
In that same time window, the Rays have pumped out 119 weighted runs created plus (wRC+) and are a top-10 club at getting on base.
That’s not to mention that Randy Arozarena is having his way with the Yankees’ pitching staff in this series: He’s 6-for-13 with two home runs and four RBIs.
Zach Littell is no Cy Young candidate on the mound for Tampa Bay, but he executes excellent control, placing in the top-six percentile in walk rate amongst all pitchers.
Betting on Baseball?
He tamed the Yankees to a four-hit victory on May 11, back when their offense was still consistent, so I’m backing him to help propel his team to a series clincher during desperate times in The Bronx.
THE PLAY: Rays (+135 BetMGM)
Credit: Source link
