Blue Jays vs. Rays Pick
The Toronto Blue Jays and the host Tampa Bay Rays continue their three-game series Wednesday at 7:10PM EST.
According to oddsmakers at BetDSI, the Blue Jays are a -111 favorite on the moneyline. The Rays are a +101 underdog, while the over-under is 8.5.
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The pitching matchup will pit Toronto’s Marcus Stroman (11-6, 2.99 ERA) against Tampa Bay’s Austin Pruitt (6-4, 5.37). Stroman has become the unquestioned ace of the Toronto staff, most recently giving up two earned runs over 6 1/3 innings during a 3-2 win over the same Rays. He has a 1.30 WHIP and a 3.42 ERA in 12 road starts. Pruitt wasn’t sharp in his last start, giving up six earned runs on 11 hits over seven innings in a 7-1 home loss to Seattle. But overall, he’s only had one other poor start in his last 10. Pruitt has a WHIP of 1.50 and has a home ERA of 5.13 in 33 1/3 innings.
Toronto enters with a 59-66 record and is 25-37 on the road, while Tampa Bay is 62-65 with a 33-32 home record. The Rays won the series opener 6-5, but the Bluejays have won six of the last 10 meetings. The over-under is 5-5 in those 10 games.
Tuesday saw Lucas Duda and Corey Dickerson hit early home runs to propel the Tampa Bay offense. Kevin Kiermaier had two hits and two RBIs, while Evan Longoria was 2-for-5 with a double plus a run and an RBI. Chris Archer gave up three runs (one earned) and struck out 10 over six innings to get the win. Alex Colome recorded his 37th save. Nori Aoki and Josh Donaldson both homered for Toronto, while Ryan Goins had two hits and an RBI. Chris Rowley gave up four earned runs in 3 1/3 innings to take the loss.
Stroman is a better pitcher, but the Rays recently faced him whereas Pruitt last threw against the Blue Jays with 2 2/3 innings of scoreless relief on June 13. Couple that with the facts that Tampa Bay is at home and Toronto is struggling. Take the small dog.
MLB DAILY PREDICTION: TAMPA BAY RAYS +101