Tampa Bay Rays vs Boston Red Sox Predictions, Odds, Picks

• Rays deliver gut punch in series opening win
• Pitching matchup rather even
• X-factors to watch

Odds presented by: DraftKings Sportsbook

Trends to Watch

• Rays are 5-0 in their last 5 road games vs. a team with a winning record
• Rays are 8-1 in their last 9 road games
• Rays are 7-1 in their last 8 road games vs. a right-handed starter
• Rays are 15-5 in their last 20 vs. a team with a winning record
• Rays are 23-7 in their last 30 overall
• Over is 7-1 in Rays last 7 vs. American League East
• Over is 8-3 in Rays last 11 overall
• Under is 11-6 in Rays last 17 vs. a team with a winning record
• Rays are 14-4 in the last 18 meetings in Boston
• Rays are 6-0 in the last 6 head-to-head meetings
• Red Sox are 14-6 in their last 20 home games
• Red Sox are 3-11 in their last 14 overall
• Under is 8-2 in Red Sox last 10 home games
• Under is 6-3 in Red Sox last 9 overall

Tampa Bay Rays vs Boston Red Sox Prediction and Picks

Boston came into this series ice cold while the Rays came in feeling pretty good. They likely knew if they could take this series they would be in the drivers seat for the division title. After a delivering a punch to the gut in last night’s come from behind victory, the Rays can separate can really shake up the standings with a big win Wednesday. We like Tampa Bay money line.

Pick:

Tampa Bay Money Line

Garcia’s 2021 record: (4x-4x-2)

How to Watch Tampa Bay Rays vs Boston Red Sox

Big Series in Race for Al East

The two best divisions in baseball are the NL West and the AL East. It’s up to everybody which order they want to rank the two, but they’re undeniably a class above the other divisions.

In the AL East, four teams are all 10 games above .500. That’s incredible depth. The Rays and Red Sox are fortunate to be on top of that division, but their order continues to flip. Just two weeks ago Boston had a two game lead, yet now Tampa’s lead is up to five.

Avoiding the Wild Card game is critical, and how late in the season only adds to it.

That’s what made yesterday’s come-from-behind win for Tampa just so brutal for Boston. The Sox led 4-1 early, but Tampa chipped away all game before scoring four runs in the ninth for the win. Seven different players scored for Tampa.

Will Starters Be Able to Hold Opposing Offenses at Bay?

Nathan Eovaldi and Josh Fleming are both having solid seasons, but neither are seen nas aces. They both have tough matchups against potent offenses, so who has the edge? Tough to say.

It’s tough to know how to feel about Eovaldi in this spot. On the one hand he has been good at home this season; 5-3 at Fenway Park with a 3.42 ERA through 13 starts. That said, he’s been brutal of late. Eovaldi has surrendered five runs or more in three of his past five starts — Boston has lost each of those contests.

That’s all added up to a 9-5 record on the season, with a 4.07 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and 124 strikeouts in 126 innings. About right.

Fleming’s story has been somewhat similar, although the bad news for him is he’s not at home. The 25-year-old has a 6.39 ERA in five starts and seven total appearances on the road this year. On top of that, he’s struggled of late, giving up 14 earned runs in his last four starts, never making it more than five innings.

However, he did get a win in his last start (the best of the bunch) giving up two runs in five innings against Seattle.

X-Factors to Watch

The Rays are hard to pick an X-factor because they’re so incredibly balanced. Get this — they don’t have a single player with an OPS above .805, yet they have seven (!) with an OPS above .772.

The man we will identify with this one is the man they acquired to add depth to this lineup, Nelson Cruz. The ageless wonder just keeps hitting — he has two home runs and seven RBIs in the last week.

For Boston, we’ll look at Hunter Renfroe. Renfroe gets overlooked because of the names on this roster, but he’s a legitimate power threat. He flashed that again yesterday with a home run to straightaway centerfield. He had a home run, double and three RBIs yesterday and now has 19 long balls on the year. He can change the game at any time.