Yankees vs. Rays: Picks, predictions, how to watch Sunday’s game

The New York Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays square off on Sunday with first pitch set for 1:40 p.m. ET. The game takes place at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida and will only be available on local TV or through an MLB.tv subscription. Frankie Montas (4-11, 3.94 ERA) will start for the Yankees with Shawn Armstrong (2-1, 4.72 ERA) on the mound for the Rays.

New York (79-54) lost three games in a row and is holding onto a four-game lead over the Tampa Bay Rays for the top spot in the American League East. Montas will make his sixth start with the Yankees after starting the season with the Oakland Athletics, and he allowed four runs over six innings of work in Monday’s loss to the Los Angeles Angels. New York has the fourth best offense in runs per game (4.9), and Aaron Judge is the league leader in home runs (52) and RBI (114).

Tampa Bay (74-57) has a five-game winning streak as it continues to creep closer to the Yankees in the division. Armstrong started his season with the Miami Marlins and has made 33 appearances since joining the Rays, with all but one outing came out of the bullpen. Randy Arozarena will enter Sunday’s game leading the team in RBI (70).

Yankees vs. Rays

Pitchers: Frankie Montas vs. Shawn Armstrong
First pitch: 1:40 p.m. ET
Yankees local broadcast: YES
Rays local broadcast: Bally Sports Sun
Live stream: MLB.tv (subscription)

Odds, picks & predictions

Run Line: Yankees -1.5 (+140)
Run total: 7
Moneyline odds: Yankees -125, Rays +105

Moneyline pick: Rays +105

There’s a lot to like about Tampa Bay in this spot, and it’s a bit surprising you can get plus odds on the Rays at home. The Yankees scored just one run in this series and scored three or less in seven of their last eight games, so you can get great value with Tampa Bay to close out the sweep.

Player prop pick: Frankie Montas over 4.5 strikeouts (-160)

Montas has an 8.9 K/9 heading into the start and has a strong chance at getting to five strikeouts against the Rays. Tampa Bay strikes out the 11th-most times per game (8.7), and Montas struck out six hitters in both of his last two starts.

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