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Monday is home to a slate of MLB action as we'll be giving you a prediction and pick for this American League matchup between the two teams at the opposite spectrums of the standings. The Tampa Bay Rays (48-20) will begin a four-game series against the Oakland Athletics (17-50). Check out our MLB odds series for our Rays-Athletics prediction and pick.
The Tampa Bay Rays currently lead the AL East by 5.5 games and have the best record in Major League Baseball. They're 8-2 in their last 10 games and have a golden opportunity is getting to face the league's worst team for a lengthy four-game series. The Rays are one of the teams to beat with the third best odds to win the World Series at +550. Their ace Zach Eflin (RHP) will get the start.
The Oakland Athletics are last in the AL West and owners of the worst record in baseball. In May, they went on another long losing streak of 11 games. While they dropped another five-in-a-row just weeks ago, the Athletics have won their last five games, including a 2-1 series win over the Pirates and a three-game sweep of the Brewers. They were able to take out two leading teams in the NL and will look to gain a few wins against the league's best. James Kaprielian (RHP) will be their starter.
Here are the Rays-Athletics MLB odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
MLB Odds: Rays-Athletics Odds
Tampa Bay Rays: -1.5 (-162)
Oakland Athletics: +1.5 (+134)
Over (8.5): -118
Under (8.5): -104
How To Watch Rays vs. Athletics
TV: Bally Sports Sun, NBC Sports California
Stream: MLB.TV, fuboTV
Time: 9:40 p.m. ET/ 6:40 p.m. PT
*Watch MLB games LIVE with fuboTV (click for a free trial)*
Why The Rays Could Cover The Spread
The Tampa Bay Rays rank in the MLB's top-3 for average, RBI, hits, home runs. They also lead the league in stolen bases and have a number of players ranking in the top-5 in individual statistics. Yandy Diaz continues to see the ball at a great rate of .313 and Wander Franco ranks third in the MLB in stolen bases with 22. If the Rays are able to get themselves on the base paths, they stand a great chance to drive in some runs with their speed and capitalize on extra-base hits. Their pitching has been dominant all season, so it's really a matter of whether they can get their bats going to secure a win.
The Rays pitching staff is arguably the league's best and they feature a 1-2 punch of Shane McClanahan and Zach Eflin, who combine for 18 wins on the season so far. McClanahan was the first MLB pitcher to 10 wins as the Rays won their last game. This time, it'll be Eflin getting the nod behind his 8-1 record and 2.97 ERA thru 66.2 IP. In his last start a week ago, Eflin threw six scoreless innings as his team completed the shutout bid in the 7-0 win. He's got a ton of confidence and will be heading into this matchup having won his last five starts. Look for Eflin to dominate on the mound in this one as he tries to cool off the hot A's.
Why The Athletics Could Cover The Spread
While the Athletics are having a nightmare season, this last five-game stretch may be their best work so far. They outscored the NL Central leading Pirates by 14 runs and took two of three games. They turned right around and swept the other NL Central leading Brewers, outscoring them by six runs in three games. The streak marks the first time they've won four consecutive games on the season and their first completed series sweep. While it may not do much to salvage their historically bad season, it's good to see the A's players at least having fun playing the game.
James Kaprielian will start at 1-6 with a 7.21 ERA thru 43.2 innings of work. While he's only given up seven home runs, he's walked 27 batters in a short amount of time and hasn't been able to find his control. He can't afford to give the Rays any free baserunners, so it'll take an elevated effort from Kaprielian to get a win for his squad. Don't count the A's out with this treak they're on, but they may be too disadvantaged on the mound against Tampa Bay.
Final Rays-Athletics Prediction & Pick
It's great to see the Athletics win a few games and earn a series sweep, but wins are going to be much harder against this Rays team. Their pitching is too dialed-in right now for an A's team that, at it's core, is still wildly inconsistent. While the A's may manage to squeak a win across at some point in this series, it won't be against Zach Eflin. Let's go with the Rays runline as they see another dominant pitching performance.
Final Rays-Athletics Prediction & Pick: Tampa Bay Rays -1.5 (-164)
