CC Sabathia (6-9, 4.18 ERA) and Chris Archer (6-15, 4.26 ERA) are on the hill in the first of a three-game series between the New York Yankees (58-56) and the Tampa Bay Rays (46-67) at Yankee Stadium. Action begins at 7:05 p.m. ET on Friday, Aug. 12 and can be seen on YES, SUN and FOX.
Sabathia pitched 5.2 innings in his most recent start, surrendering three runs, striking out five and walking four in a 5-2 defeat to the Indians. Carlos Beltran (.304, 51 Rs, 23 HRs, 68 RBIs) went 1 for 4 yesterday. Archer went 6.0 innings, surrendering one run, striking out seven and walking three in a 7-3 win over the Twins in his last outing.
The odds for New York and Tampa Bay are even, while the Over/Under (O/U) is sitting at eight runs. Within its division, New York has a record of 15-24 SU. The Yankees have seen a decline in scoring against teams inside their division, averaging 3.3 runs per game. They average 4.1 runs per game on the season. New York’s pitchers put it all together when division rivals are on the field. Its average runs allowed per game drops to 4.0 against fellow AL East members, compared to its 4.4 season average. The Yankees are the third-best team in the AL at limiting hits to their opponents, allowing only 8.4 hits per game so far this season. Opponents have consistently been struck out by the Yankees, who rank second in the AL in strikeouts per game with 8.7.
The Rays are 19-24 against teams in their division.
The Rays lead the season series, 5-4. The Yankees have a 41-37 record against right-handed starting pitchers on the year, which is what they’ll be facing when Archer takes the mound. Sabathia (LHP) will be on the hill against the Rays, who have a 12-15 record against left-handed starting pitchers.
Predictions: SU Winner – NYY, O/U – Over
Notes
For the 17th time this season, the Rays registered at least two errors in a game.
After a weak showing last week where they got in seven hits, the Yankees need to step it up. The Rays have a record of 23-16 when opponents get seven hits or less.
When they are outhit, the Rays are 10-50. The Yankees have a 12-45 record when opponents outhit them.
New York ranks near the bottom of the league when it comes to home runs, hitting 114 this season. Tampa Bay ranks in the top 10 with 146.
New York and Tampa Bay both rank in the top half of the league in hits. New York sits at 13th with 8.40 hits per game and Tampa Bay ranks 15th with 8.07.
Ranking 27th, New York is near the bottom of the league for its on-base plus slugging percentage (.706). Tampa Bay ranks in the bottom half at 20th with an OPS of .728.
When the Rays allow at least one home run, they are 24-60. When the Yankees allow one or more homers, they have a 34-45 record.
