The Tampa Bay Rays get set to host the Boston Red Sox in a highly-touted AL East battle on Tuesday night. It’s time to continue our MLB odds series and make a Red Sox-Rays prediction and pick.
Boston will look to gain ground on Tampa in the AL East as they enter this series with a half-game lead. The Red Sox swept the Rays back in April and will look to build on their head-to-head edge as well. Both clubs are coming off of disappointing series losses to the Royals and Mariners over the weekend.
Here’s how sportsbooks have set the opening Red Sox-Rays odds.
MLB Odds: Red Sox-Rays Odds
Boston Red Sox +1.5 (-190)
Tampa Bay Rays -1.5 (+165)
Over 8 Runs (-109)
Under 8 Runs (-111)
Why The Red Sox Could Cover The Spread
The Boston Red Sox have been one of the most surprising and exciting clubs in all of baseball this season. Boston enters this series with a 43-29 record and half-game lead in the loaded AL East division. The Red Sox have found a ton of success on the road with a 23-12 record away from Fenway Park. They are also 7-2 in their last nine road games to date.
Boston has been one of the best offensive clubs in baseball this season. They average 5.03 runs per game, which is good for third in the Majors. The Red Sox average the third most hits per game as well and have a 30-19 record against right-handed starting pitchers. The pitching staff has struggled at times for Boston as they're 18th in the league in runs allowed per game.
Boston will turn to left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez for this series opener. The southpaw has been really struggling lately and it's been over a month since he has registered a win or quality start. Rodriguez is 0-4 in his past seven starts with an 8.55 ERA. The Red Sox starter did strike out eight batters in four innings against the Braves in his last start, which he hopes to carry over into this start.
Why The Rays Could Cover The Spread
The defending American League champions have had a strong start to the season and will have a chance to regain control of the AL East with a win on Tuesday. Tampa Bay enters with a 43-30 record despite their current six-game losing streak. The Rays have been solid at home with a 19-14 record and wins in eight of their last nine games at Tropicana Field.
Tampa Bay has been solid with the bats as they average 4.84 runs per game, which is the ninth-best mark in the Majors. They average the fifth-most walks per game as well and play very fundamentally sound baseball. It's their pitching and defense that makes this team so elite, though. The Rays allow the seventh-fewest runs, third-fewest walks, and ninth-most strikeouts per game.
Tampa Bay will turn to right-hander Andrew Kittredge for the series opener. Kittredge is having a phenomenal season with a 5-1 record and 1.34 ERA through 33.2 innings of work. The Rays righty will serve as the opener with lefty Ryan Yarbrough will likely pitch the bulk of this game. Kittredge has excelled in all roles this season and has been lights out over his first 25 appearances of the season.
Final Red Sox-Rays Prediction & Pick
This series will feature a ton of excitement between two clubs that have postseason aspirations. Boston's offense is extremely potent and red-hot coming in and Tampa Bay's is nowhere to be found. The Rays have been really struggling over this current six game losing streak. They just got swept by the Seattle Mariners and now have to face a left-handed pitcher, which they've struggled against this season. I'm picking Boston to roll into Tampa and ride their hot bats to a win in the series opener.
FINAL PICK: Boston Red Sox ML (+106)
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