The Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay Rays will continue a three-game series on Saturday afternoon in Tampa.
Boston inched closer to clinching a wild-card spot in the American League playoffs by prevailing 4-2 on Friday. That ended a six-game winning streak for the Rays, but they still own a comfortable lead atop the AL East.
With Saturday's contest set for 4:10 pm ET, it’s time to break down the matchup and discuss the best bets to make.
Red Sox vs. Rays betting picks and predictions
Rays ML (-150)
Tampa Bay is well positioned to bounce back from Friday’s loss and even up this series. Taking the mound for the Rays is trade-deadline acquisition Freddy Peralta, who has been mostly outstanding for his new club ever since a rough first outing.
The right-hander has been especially impressive of late, as he fired 6.0 scoreless innings against Detroit at the end of August and has since compiled a 1.06 ERA through three September appearances.
Most importantly, the Rays are playing in the friendly confines of Tropicana Field. They may have come up short on Friday, but no team in all of Major League Baseball has more home wins (they are 53-26 in their own park). Tampa Bay was on a 10-2 run at the Trop prior to last night’s setback.
First baseman Jonathan Aranda is on a six-game hitting streak for the Rays. He has delivered a double and an RBI in each of the past two games and homered twice during this past Sunday’s 14-4 romp over Houston. Second baseman Richie Palacios is batting .303 in September with five home runs, 13 RBIs and three stolen bases.
Under 7.5 (-115)
Boston is handing the ball to Brayan Bello, who has mostly taken up a bullpen role in recent weeks. That’s not to say he won’t be an effective starter. Bello has pitched 6.2 scoreless innings across his last two appearances, allowing just four hits and two walks while recording nine strikeouts during this stretch.
Regardless of how Bello fares, Boston’s relievers should get plenty of work in this contest. That is by no means bad news for the visitors, as they boast the second-best bullpen ERA in all of baseball (3.10).
Amazingly, Tampa Bay has gone 10 straight games without allowing more than four runs. It has held opponents to two runs or fewer on six occasions during this dominant stretch of pitching. In Peralta’s last four outings, the opposition has crossed the plate a grand total of seven times.
All things considered, the under looks like the way to go.
Junior Caminero Over 1.5 hits, runs and RBIs (-138)
Junior Caminero is 1-for-9 lifetime against Bello, but that should not make you overthink this play. Keep in mind that Bello is unlikely to work deep into Saturday’s game, so Caminero will probably get a look at multiple different relievers.
The 23-year-old Dominican Republic native has cleared this 1.5 quota in four of his last five contests, including yesterday’s 1-for-3 effort in which he drove in a run.
Read more betting picks and predictions for the MLB on site.
Red Sox vs. Rays odds
Boston Red Sox | +115 |
Tampa Bay Rays | -135 |
Run Line | TB Rays -1.5 |
Total | O/U 7.5 |
Red Sox vs. Rays player props
Player Home Run Odds
Wilyer Abreu (BOS Red Sox) | +450 |
Willson Contreras (BOS Red Sox) | +475 |
Roman Anthony (BOS Red Sox) | +550 |
Junior Caminero (TB Rays) | +400 |
Victor Mesa Jr. (TB Rays) | +600 |
Jonathan Aranda (TB Rays) | +650 |
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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.
