Tampa Bay is the somewhat unexpected #1 seed in the AL going forward in the 2020 postseason. Kevin Cash’s team has taken care of business ahead of Blue Jays at Rays game 2 betting, winning the opener 3-1 on Tuesday. Toronto held tight as +162 underdogs, but can they avoid elimination on Wednesday?
The Rays would seem to have value at just -137 on Wednesday afternoon. Tampa Bay finished the regular season 20 games over .500 and was 20-9 at Tropicana Field. Toronto has been jet-setted all over the country this season – but were still a respectable 32-28 with a talented young core.
Division Foes Very Familiar With Each Other
The Rays and Jays are no strangers to each other as Wednesday’s game is their 12th of the year. Tampa Bay has won 7 of those with the total going with the under going 6-4-1 so far in the series.
Toronto’s time may come with young stars on their roster, but the combination of Cavan Biggio, Bo Bichette, and Vlad Guerrero, Jr. went just 1-10 in their postseason debut on Tuesday. It was a disappointing series opener, especially considering the Blue Jays outhit the Rays 5-4. Toronto had also been on a nice offensive run to wind down the regular season, scoring at least four runs in the last five, including a 14-1 beatdown of the Yankees last Wednesday.
The bright note heading into Blue Jays at Rays game two betting is that Toronto pushed their ace Hyun-jin Ryu back a game and let Matt Shoemaker start the opener. Shoemaker was an opener in a sense, allowing 2 hits and 0 ER over 3.0 IP but Ryu has allowed a run or less in 8 of his last 10.
Following Up Snell’s Masterpiece
There’s a lot of reasons to like the ‘under’ for Blue Jays at Rays game 2 betting even though it’s listed at just 7. First off, Blake Snell was an artist against the Toronto bats in game one, allowing just 1 hit over 5.2 innings.
Toronto counters with their ace in game two, but Tampa Bay likes the spot they are in with Tyler Glasnow on the hill. The right-hander was 5-1 on the year, although his ERA was up there a bit at 4.08. Glasnow is a strike out machine though with 7+ in his last eight starts.
Tampa Bay’s key to winning is always going to be pitching, as they ranked 3rd in the majors in runs/game allowed during the regular season (3.56). Toronto rode their offense to break a 3-year postseason drought, ranking 7th in MLB at 5.03 runs/game.
Blue Jays at Rays Game 2 Betting Free Pick
It’s just hard to see Wednesday’s elimination game as a high scoring affair. Toronto saved their ace Ryu for game two and Tampa Bay sends ACE 2.0 Glasnow to the hill to try and eliminate the pesky Blue Jays.
-137 isn’t a bad price to pay for the AL East winners, and nearly 70% of the public does like Tampa Bay. The best bet in game two of this American League wild card round is the ‘under’ though. Ryu will be great, Glasnow will strike out at least 8, and bats will continue to struggle.
Free Pick: Under 7
