Both the Red Sox and Rays are sending young pitchers to the mound on Thursday, as Brayan Bello is starting for the Red Sox, and the Rays are going with Zack Littell. The game is set to get started at 6:50 PM ET from Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg. Boston is currently 3rd in the AL East, with a record of 76-76, while the Rays are 4th in the division at 74-78.
The money line odds have the Red Sox at -106 compared to the Rays at -114, and the over/under line is sitting at 7.5 runs. This AL East matchup can be seen on BSSUN, and the forecast for Thursday’s game calls for partly cloudy skies and temperatures in the mid-80s.
Red Sox Look to Continue Road Dominance Against Rays with Bello on the Mound
Boston is 76-76 this season and 22-23 against the AL East. They are 35-40 at home and 41-36 on the road. As the road favorite, Boston is 15-6, and their overall series record is 22-19-6. The Red Sox are 41-34 when favored and 35-42 as the underdog.
Brayan Bello is 14-7 this season and has an ERA of 4.60. He will be looking to build off his last start, where he went 5 1/3 innings and gave up just one earned run. Boston’s offense is averaging 4.7 runs per game, which is 9th in the league. They are hitting .254 as a team, which is 5th best, and their slugging percentage is also 5th best at .429. Today, the Red Sox are on the road against the Rays, and the over/under line is set at 7.5 runs. Boston’s games have had an average over/under line of 9 runs this year, and they are 75-69 on the over/under this season. When the line is set at 7.5 runs, they are 9-12. This season, 84.9% of their games have had higher over/under lines than 7.5 runs, with only 1.3% having lower lines.
Rays Face Uphill Battle Against Red Sox: Littell Takes Mound as 7.5-Run Underdogs
The Rays are 74-78 overall and trail the Red Sox by two games for 3rd place in the AL East. They are also 15 games behind the Yankees. Tampa Bay is 35-31 as the favorite and 39-47 as the underdog. Today, they are 7.5-run underdogs. Zack Littell is 7-9 this season with a 3.73 ERA. He has a 3.30 ERA at home and is facing a Red Sox offense that is 29th in scoring. The Rays are 22-18-7 in series this season.
Overall, the Rays are 38-39 at home and 36-39 on the road. They have gone 20-25 in divisional games. Tampa Bay is 66-78 on the O/U line this season, and the average total for their games is 8 runs. The Rays have hit 140 home runs this season, which is 23rd in the league. Their team batting average of .231 is 19th. Yandy Díaz leads the team in batting average and RBIs, while Brandon Lowe has 19 home runs this year and is on a 3-game hitting streak.
Red Sox Favored Over Rays: Bet on Money Line and Over 7.5 Runs
Our pick for this Red Sox vs. Rays matchup is to take the Red Sox on the money line at -106. We actually have the Red Sox winning this one by a score of 6-4. If you’re looking for a parlay, you could also take a look at the over/under line, which is sitting at 7.5 runs. Our prediction would be to take the over.
Looking at the starting pitchers, Zack Littell actually has the second-best chances among today’s starters to pick up a win. However, we have him finishing with just four strikeouts, which is the lowest among today’s starters. As for Brayan Bello, we have him finishing with six K’s and have him ranked 10th among today’s starters in terms of strikeout projections.
