Texas Rangers vs. New York Yankees: Picks, Predictions, Odds and Player Props

It’s the start of a new series in the Bronx as the Texas Rangers travel for a three-game set with the New York Yankees.

Both teams lost their midweek series and are looking to bounce back this weekend, but it won’t be easy since both have their sights set on the postseason. 

Carlos Rodon and Cody Bradford are the probable starters for Saturday's first game of a doubleheader - the first game of the series was postponed from Friday to Saturday due to the weather forecast - so let’s preview this American League matchup and give our best bets.

Texas Rangers vs. New York Yankees betting picks and predictions

Yankees ML (-200)

The Rangers made a few confusing moves at the trade deadline. Texas dealt Michael Lorenzen to the Royals for a reliever which strengthened Kansas City’s rotation and severely weakened Texas’. 

Texas were already missing Jacob deGrom, Max Scherzer, and Jon Gray to injuries, so to see them move one of their few remaining healthy pitchers was a head scratcher. 

Lorenzen’s absence created another hole in the rotation and his spot was either going to go to Cody Bradford or Jack Leiter. 

Bradford won the opportunity and made his first start last week against the Red Sox and was hit hard for three runs, four hits, and two home runs in just 3.2 innings. 

He struggled with his efficiency since there were a lot of deep counts and very few swings and misses. That might be the case again since he will face a difficult Yankees lineup that has a 106 wRC+ against left-handed pitchers since June 1.

Yankees pitcher Carlos Rodon is not easy to predict. His control issues have made it hard for him to be successful against elite lineups, and his main issue has been the long ball. 

Rodon has a 10.4% barrel rate in 2024 which ranks in the 11th percentile among pitchers and is the main reason he’s allowed the third most home runs in the American League. 

With that said, Rodon has looked much better since the break. The southpaw has surrendered just 10 hits and six runs while striking out 25 hitters in three outings in the second half of the season.

He’s limited hitters to a .152 batting average and .167 xBA in those three starts, so his success hasn’t been a fluke. It’s a little steep, but I’m siding with the Yankees in the series opener.

Under 9.0 total runs (-115)

The remnants of Hurricane Debby are finally reaching the northeast as plenty of rain is in the forecast in New York for Friday, and while it's predicted to be sunny on Saturday, the air will still be heavy for the early game after the precipitation the night before.

With that in mind, I’m siding with the under. Hitters have an immediate disadvantage when it rains because the ball won’t travel as well in the air, and that’s going to be critical at Yankee Stadium because of the short porch in left and right field. 

As for the pitching matchup, Rodon is fortunate that this start is at home and not on the road. The southpaw’s ERA drops to 3.76 and he’s limited hitters to just a .202 batting average at home which is much better than the .260 average he allows on the road.

The Rangers lineup has been sluggish in the second half of the season. Marcus Semien and Corey Seager are still producing at a high rate, but the rest of the lineup has been in an extended slump. 

Since the break, the Rangers have the fourth lowest batting average, third lowest on-base percentage, and fourth lowest wRC+. 

Lack of offense has been a big problem for Texas and that should help the under. Plus, the Yankees bullpen rested its high-leverage relievers Thursday night since the game was out of hand, which means we should expect to see Michael Tonkin, Luke Weaver, and Michael Leiter be the first arms used tonight.

I’m siding with the under in this rainy matchup in New York City.

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Texas Rangers vs. New York Yankees odds

Texas Rangers	+165 ML
New York Yankees	-200 ML
Run Line	Yankees -1.5
Total	O/U 9.0

Texas Rangers vs. New York Yankees player props

Player Home Run Odds

Marcus Semien	+500
Corey Seager	+340
Adolis Garcia	+400
Aaron Judge	+210
Juan Soto	+300
Giancarlo Stanton	+285

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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.