Tigers vs. Red Sox Pick
With two top pitchers on the mound tonight, will the Boston Red Sox and Detroit Tigers struggle to produce runs when they meet at 7:15PM ET?
According to oddsmakers at BetDSI, Boston is the favorite in tonight’s game, as the Red Sox are getting odds of -190 to win, while the Tigers are listed with a money line of +175 to prevail. The over/under total for the contest has been set at 9 runs.
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Today’s pitching matchup has Justin Verlander (4-4, 4.63 ERA) on the rubber for the Tigers to face Chris Sale (7-2, 2.89) of the Red Sox. Verlander had an injury scare in his last start, going just 2 innings before being pulled. He has had a shaky season thus far, allowing 36 earned runs and 33 walks over 70 innings. He has 70 strikeouts with a 1.46 WHIP. Sale has allowed multiple run in his last eight starts, but has managed to get deep into games for the most part. Sale has pitched 84 innings this season, allowing 27 earned runs and 17 walks with 119 strikeouts. His WHIP is just 0.93.
Boston took the first game of the series on Friday, 5-3. The two went under the lofty total of 11 runs. Boston is now 33-27 overall, 18-10 at home and 30-28 with the under. Detroit is 29-31 overall, 13-19 on the road and 32-26 with the over.
A 3-run eighth inning lifted the Red Sox to the win on Friday night. Alex Wilson allowed the three runs for the Tigers, blowing his third save of the season. He spoiled a respectable start from Jordan Zimmerman, who went 6 innings and allowed just two runs. Jackie Bradley Jr. broke the game open for Boston with a home run in the eighth. He drove in three runs on Friday while Mitch Moreland had three hits and two RBI for Boston. J.D. Martinez had three hits to lead Detroit while Victor Martinez had two.
The total seems high for a game featuring pitchers like Sale and Verlander. I expect Sale to have a lot of success today. He knows this Detroit lineup well from his days with the White Sox. He should easily be able to rack up 8-10 strikeouts tonight against Detroit. Verlander has struggled, but he still battles and is still capable for a dominant start. He may not get it, but he’s not likely to give up enough runs for Boston to hit the over on its own. I don’t see Detroit scoring much today, so the Sox would have to put up 7-9 runs for the over to hit.
MLB DAILY PREDICTION: TIGERS/RED SOX UNDER 9