Red Sox vs. Rays Pick
The Boston Red Sox and host Tampa Bay Rays begin a three-game series Friday night at 7:10PM EST.
Oddsmakers at sports book Bovada.lv have set the Red Sox as a -200 favorite to win on the moneyline. The Rays are a +170 underdog and the over-under is 7.5.
Pitching for Boston will be Chris Sale (16-7, 2.76 ERA), while Tampa Bay will turn to Matt Andriese (5-3, 4.46). Sale comes in with a 0.95 WHIP and 278 strikeouts over 195 2/3 innings. He threw six shutout innings his last start as he allowed six hits, struck out eight and walked one in a 9-0 home victory over the Rays. Sale holds a 2.72 ERA in 17 road starts. Andriese has a 1.39 WHIP with 62 strikeouts over 70 2/3 innings. He was hit extremely hard in the 9-0 loss at Boston, surrendering eight runs (six earned) on seven hits with two strikeouts and two walks over 1 2/3 innings. Andriese has a 3.48 home ERA in 41 1/3 frames.
Boston has an 83-63 overall record and is 37-35 on the road, while Tampa Bay is 72-75 and 37-36 at home. The two teams have split the last 10 matchups 5-5 and the over-under is 6-4.
The Red Sox won two of three at home against Oakland, including a 6-2 triumph in the series finale Thursday afternoon. Andrew Benintendi was 3-for-4 with two doubles, a run and three RBIs to key the offense. Christian Vazquez contributed a solo home run. Drew Pomeranz threw six innings of one-run ball to earn the win. The Rays lost two of three at home to the Yankees, losing 3-2 in Wednesday’s series finale. Kevin Kiermaier was 2-for-5 with a solo home run, while Adeiny Hechavarria finished 2-for-3 with a walk plus an RBI. Chris Archer gave up three earned runs in four innings to take the loss.
Baseball has a way of being more unpredictable than any other sport, so why wouldn’t a rematch between Sale and Andriese go the way of the latter this time around? The over-under is set low and Tampa Bay is hosting, so it might only take three or four runs to win this game. The Rays also have the advantage of seeing Sale again on such quick notice and have perhaps picked up on some tendencies.
MLB DAILY PREDICTION: TAMPA BAY RAYS +200