The Toronto Blue Jays take on the Los Angeles Angels. Check out our MLB odds series for our Blue Jays Angels prediction and pick.
Hyun-Jin Ryu gets the start for the Blue Jays, while Shohei Ohtani gets the assignment for the Angels.
Hyun-Jin Ryu endured two brutal starts in mid-April, giving up 11 runs in 7 1/3 innings. He was then placed on the injured list with left forearm inflammation. He spent four weeks on the mend and returned to the Toronto rotation on May 14 against the Rays. In that outing against Tampa Bay and then in his next start against the Cincinnati Reds on May 20, Ryu looked like a much better pitcher, the one who delivered a solid first half of the 2021 season before running out of steam in September. Against the Rays and Reds, Ryu allowed a total of one run in 10 2/3 innings. He did give up a lot of hard-hit balls against the Reds and got some BABIP luck in that contest. Nevertheless, Ryu kept the ball in the ballpark; when things go south, he gets tagged for home runs and leaves his pitches sitting up in the zone. The Jays badly need him to be the guy who thrived in the spring of 2021.
Shohei Ohtani has powered the Angels to the forefront of the American League wild card chase. In addition to his big bat, Ohtani has been solid on the mound for the Halos. He has a 2.82 ERA and has not given up more than two runs in any of his last five starts. His ERA is above 2.8 runs only because of one bad outing on April 14 in which he allowed six runs to the Rangers in 3 2/3 innings. Otherwise, he has been superb. He hasn't allowed more than six hits in any of his seven starts. In 38 1/3 innings pitched, he has issued only nine walks and has given up just three home runs. Few walks, few homers, few baserunners, high-level consistency. Ohtani is delivering the goods and making it easier to arrive at a Blue Jays Angels prediction.
Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the Blue Jays-Angels MLB odds.
MLB Odds: Blue Jays-Angels Odds
Toronto Blue Jays: +1.5 (-164)
Los Angeles Angels: -1.5 (+136)
Over: 7.5 (-110)
Under: 7.5 (-110)
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Why The Blue Jays Could Cover the Spread
The Blue Jays badly needed the kind of game they played on Tuesday in St. Louis. They defeated the Cardinals, but what really mattered was that they scored eight runs and finally busted loose on offense. Toronto has badly underachieved on offense this season even while its pitching has exceeded expectations. The Blue Jays have actually won a lot of close games, but they haven't been playing (let alone winning) the 9-5 or 8-4 games many people thought they would play on a regular basis. The Jays needed their offense to shine. Maybe that will get their bats going. Vladimir Guerrero homered on Tuesday, his first home run in 15 games. If this team awakens at the plate, it becomes a heavyweight. This is something to consider when making a Blue Jays Angels pick based on the current MLB odds.
Why The Angels Could Cover the Spread
Hyun-Jin Ryu did not give up many runs in his most recent start against the Cincinnati Reds, but he gave up several hard-hit balls. It's still an open question as to whether Ryu is fully recovered from his minor injury. In addition to that particular point, Shohei Ohtani has been very consistent as a pitcher for the Angels this season. The advantage in the pitching matchup, combined with the reality that the Jays are in the middle of a long road trip, gives the Halos a few advantages when thinking about a Blue Jays Angels pick.
Final Blue Jays-Angels Prediction & Pick
Ryu-Ohtani is a favorable matchup for the Angels, if only because we haven't yet seen Ryu dominate opposing hitters the way he did in the first half of 2021. There are more doubts on the Toronto side of the matchup, even though the Jays could start hitting at any time. It's frankly a good game to stay away from, but if you make a pick, the Angels are the better choice.
Final Blue Jays-Angels Prediction & Pick: Angels -1.5
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