Tampa Bay Rays at New York Yankees Preview — September 23, 2026

Probable starters

AWAY

TBD

HOME · NYY

Gerrit Cole

Lineups

Lineups are usually announced ~90 minutes before first pitch. Check back soon.

Hitter season stats

Season-to-date lines for each hitter in the projected lineup, with a Marcel projection (Proj OPS). Season columns are 2026 to date; Proj is a forward-looking estimate, not a result.

AWAY · TB Projected · top 9 by AB

BATTER	2026 SEASON							PROJ OPS
BATTER	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	HR	RBI	K	PROJ OPS
1 Yandy Díaz DH · R	.292	.358	.449	.807	22	81	96	.745
2 Junior Caminero 3B · R	.277	.363	.529	.892	41	97	125	.767
3 Jonathan Aranda 1B · L	.277	.360	.440	.800	22	92	154	.743
4 Chandler Simpson LF · L	.309	.337	.360	.697	0	38	46	.731
5 Liam Hicks C · L	.288	.371	.440	.811	18	81	52	.726
6 Cedric Mullins CF · L	.202	.283	.340	.623	14	45	93	.711
7 Taylor Walls SS · S	.216	.304	.289	.593	2	35	101	.694
8 Richie Palacios 2B · L	.234	.330	.377	.707	10	53	65	.720
9 Jonny DeLuca RF · R	.259	.290	.410	.700	9	46	70	.717

HOME · NYY Projected · top 9 by AB

BATTER	2026 SEASON							PROJ OPS
BATTER	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	HR	RBI	K	PROJ OPS
1 Ben Rice DH · L	.261	.360	.528	.888	39	95	153	.741
2 Luis García Jr. 1B · L	.281	.311	.532	.843	30	91	93	.733
3 Cody Bellinger LF · L	.270	.344	.435	.779	16	71	86	.744
4 José Caballero SS · R	.236	.292	.373	.665	14	51	105	.704
5 Heliot Ramos LF · R	.241	.305	.409	.714	13	44	113	.735
6 Paul Goldschmidt 1B · R	.253	.316	.455	.771	18	50	85	.707
7 Austin Wells C · L	.186	.286	.326	.612	13	31	101	.727
8 Ryan McMahon 3B · L	.208	.275	.343	.618	10	35	102	.715
9 Spencer Jones RF · L	.248	.317	.442	.759	11	39	98	.737

Pitcher vs. lineup projection

Projected expected wOBA for each probable starter against the opposing lineup, by batting order. A season-to-date matchup read — forward-looking, not a result.

NYY starter vs Rays lineup

Gerrit Cole (RHP)

Lineup avg xwOBA .311

1 YD Yandy Díaz RHB .329
Pitch-by-pitch projection vs. Yandy Díaz
- Four-Seam Fastball (48% usage) projects to .334 xwOBA over 480 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Slider (19% usage) projects to .354 xwOBA over 272 BIP — a meaningful edge for the batter.
- Knuckle Curve (14% usage) projects to .301 xwOBA over 21 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Changeup (11% usage) projects to .314 xwOBA over 182 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Sinker (3% usage) projects to .342 xwOBA over 432 BIP — a meaningful edge for the batter.
- Cutter (3% usage) projects to .278 xwOBA over 164 BIP — a clear edge for the pitcher.
2 JC Junior Caminero RHB .358
Pitch-by-pitch projection vs. Junior Caminero
- Four-Seam Fastball (48% usage) projects to .401 xwOBA over 293 BIP — a meaningful edge for the batter.
- Slider (19% usage) projects to .317 xwOBA over 227 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Knuckle Curve (14% usage) projects to .334 xwOBA over 25 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Changeup (11% usage) projects to .293 xwOBA over 148 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Sinker (3% usage) projects to .301 xwOBA over 337 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Cutter (3% usage) projects to .344 xwOBA over 101 BIP — a meaningful edge for the batter.
3 JA Jonathan Aranda LHB .334
Pitch-by-pitch projection vs. Jonathan Aranda
- Four-Seam Fastball (48% usage) projects to .337 xwOBA over 394 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Slider (19% usage) projects to .346 xwOBA over 129 BIP — a meaningful edge for the batter.
- Knuckle Curve (14% usage) projects to .292 xwOBA over 15 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Changeup (11% usage) projects to .348 xwOBA over 124 BIP — a meaningful edge for the batter.
- Sinker (3% usage) projects to .346 xwOBA over 198 BIP — a meaningful edge for the batter.
- Cutter (3% usage) projects to .334 xwOBA over 108 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
4 CS Chandler Simpson LHB .305
Pitch-by-pitch projection vs. Chandler Simpson
- Four-Seam Fastball (48% usage) projects to .313 xwOBA over 363 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Slider (19% usage) projects to .308 xwOBA over 82 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Knuckle Curve (14% usage) projects to .300 xwOBA over 20 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Changeup (11% usage) projects to .283 xwOBA over 98 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Sinker (3% usage) projects to .256 xwOBA over 209 BIP — a clear edge for the pitcher.
- Cutter (3% usage) projects to .310 xwOBA over 74 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
5 LH Liam Hicks LHB .318
Pitch-by-pitch projection vs. Liam Hicks
- Four-Seam Fastball (48% usage) projects to .340 xwOBA over 317 BIP — a meaningful edge for the batter.
- Slider (19% usage) projects to .289 xwOBA over 92 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Knuckle Curve (14% usage) projects to .306 xwOBA over 12 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Changeup (11% usage) projects to .287 xwOBA over 107 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Sinker (3% usage) projects to .329 xwOBA over 156 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Cutter (3% usage) projects to .313 xwOBA over 67 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
6 CM Cedric Mullins LHB .288
Pitch-by-pitch projection vs. Cedric Mullins
- Four-Seam Fastball (48% usage) projects to .288 xwOBA over 514 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Slider (19% usage) projects to .248 xwOBA over 169 BIP — a clear edge for the pitcher.
- Knuckle Curve (14% usage) projects to .310 xwOBA over 24 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Changeup (11% usage) projects to .315 xwOBA over 150 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Sinker (3% usage) projects to .335 xwOBA over 218 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Cutter (3% usage) projects to .283 xwOBA over 117 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
7 TW Taylor Walls SH .263
Pitch-by-pitch projection vs. Taylor Walls
- Four-Seam Fastball (48% usage) projects to .263 xwOBA over 378 BIP — a clear edge for the pitcher.
- Slider (19% usage) projects to .252 xwOBA over 81 BIP — a clear edge for the pitcher.
- Knuckle Curve (14% usage) projects to .279 xwOBA over 15 BIP — a clear edge for the pitcher.
- Changeup (11% usage) projects to .236 xwOBA over 103 BIP — a clear edge for the pitcher.
- Sinker (3% usage) projects to .316 xwOBA over 138 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Cutter (3% usage) projects to .303 xwOBA over 98 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
8 RP Richie Palacios LHB .321
Pitch-by-pitch projection vs. Richie Palacios
- Four-Seam Fastball (48% usage) projects to .321 xwOBA over 255 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Slider (19% usage) projects to .310 xwOBA over 73 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Knuckle Curve (14% usage) projects to .309 xwOBA over 26 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Changeup (11% usage) projects to .357 xwOBA over 70 BIP — a meaningful edge for the batter.
- Sinker (3% usage) projects to .307 xwOBA over 119 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Cutter (3% usage) projects to .330 xwOBA over 60 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
9 JD Jonny DeLuca RHB .281
Pitch-by-pitch projection vs. Jonny DeLuca
- Four-Seam Fastball (48% usage) projects to .272 xwOBA over 197 BIP — a clear edge for the pitcher.
- Slider (19% usage) projects to .264 xwOBA over 129 BIP — a clear edge for the pitcher.
- Knuckle Curve (14% usage) projects to .314 xwOBA over 10 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Changeup (11% usage) projects to .282 xwOBA over 67 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Sinker (3% usage) projects to .311 xwOBA over 137 BIP — a roughly even matchup.
- Cutter (3% usage) projects to .336 xwOBA over 59 BIP — a roughly even matchup.

Gerrit Cole vs Rays: full season matchup breakdown →

Manager comparison

AWAY · TB

Kevin Cash

Lineup 3.0 R Bunts 6.3 R IBBs 4.3 R

HOME · NYY

Aaron Boone

Lineup 3.5 R Bunts 0.4 R IBBs 3.3 R

Bullpen availability

AWAY · TB

Available 9
Limited 1
Rest required 0
Inactive 0

HOME · NYY

Available 6
Limited 2
Rest required 0
Inactive 0

Recent form

AWAY · TB

8-2 W2 +25 run diff

WWLWWWWWWL

HOME · NYY

6-4 L2 +13 run diff

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Pitching & bullpen preview

Probable starters and each bullpen's availability load in the sections above — the Rays and Yankees staffs going in.

Once the game ends, a full pitching and bullpen breakdown appears here: starter lines, the relief sequence and each arm's role, pitch counts, and where the game turned.

Keep reading

How RunsLeft analyzes games

Standard content on this page comes from the MLB Stats API. The pitching analysis describes how the game was pitched — the starter's line, the bullpen sequence and each arm's role (opener, bulk, setup, closer), pitch counts as a fatigue signal, and the leverage context where the game turned. Reliever roles are inferred from how the manager used each arm up to that date. It describes structure and constraints; it does not grade the manager.

Read the full methodology.