New York Yankees vs. Tampa Bay Rays: Jhony Brito vs. Tyler Glasnow

After a crushing defeat at the hands of the AL East-leading Orioles in Baltimore last night, the Yankees return home to face the second-place Rays in the Bronx. But before the series could even begin, the Yankees started it off on the wrong foot: Domingo Germán was scratched with discomfort around his armpit. Thus, Jhony Brito will get the call (with Ron Marinaccio headed back to Scranton) against a red-hot Tyler Glasnow.

Glasnow’s last poor start came against the Orioles, a Luis Severino-esque effort in which he yielded six runs in 4.1 innings back on June 20th. Since then, he’s spun 36.1 innings with a 2.23 ERA and an even better 1.99 FIP, thanks to a miraculous 55:7 K/BB ratio. That includes a start against Baltimore two turns ago when he struck out nine and walked none in seven vengeful innings of two-run ball. Safe to say he’s shaken off the rust after a myriad of injuries limited him to just 6.2 innings last year and nearly pushed his season debut to June this season.

In his first major-league appearance since June 28th, Jhony Brito will try to go toe-to-toe with the Rays’ star. If he’s the same Brito who held a tenuous grip on the Yankees’ fifth rotation spot for April and much of May, expect him to feature his sinker-changeup combo prominently. In the majors, he’s maxed out at 5.2 innings, but if he looks good, the Yankees may try to squeeze more out of him to rest a bullpen down an arm with Marinaccio in Scranton. Of course, wins are at a premium too, so maybe they don’t gamble too long with Brito, either.

Propping up Brito will be an Aaron Judge-led lineup. The big slugger returns after a planned off-day yesterday; he’ll hit second and DH. Gleyber Torres will set the table after holding down the two-spot in Judge’s absence. Anthony Rizzo gets another start at first and in the three-hole despite a platinum-sombrero (five-strikeout) game last night. Otherwise, it’s the usual suspects except for Ben Rortvedt, who’ll handle the catching duties in Kyle Higashioka’s stead and round out the order.

The Rays’ backstop, Christian Bethancourt, represents their weakest link, as he also rounds out their order. Otherwise, Tampa Bay will roll out an array of sluggers, beginning with All-Stars Yandy Díaz and Wander Franco atop the lineup and the always-electric Randy Arozarena cleaning up. The Yankees face a tough task in this one on both sides of the ball.

How to watch

Location: Yankee Stadium — Bronx, NY

First pitch: 7:05 pm ET

TV broadcast: YES, MLB Network

Radio broadcast: WFAN 660/101.9, WADO 1280

Online stream: MLB.tv

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