The Toronto Blue Jays and Tampa Bay Rays meet Wednesday in MLB action at Tropicana Field. Here’s a Rays vs Blue Jays Prediction. This article will include a Rays vs Blue Jays Pick.
Toronto Blue Jays Betting Preview
The Toronto Blue Jays are 62-65 on the year and play the Yankees and Royals next. The Toronto Blue Jays are batting .244 on the season, with a .305 OBP and a .377 slugging percentage. The Toronto Blue Jays’ pitching staff has a 3.96 ERA and a 1.31 WHIP. Ernie Clement leads the Toronto Blue Jays with 135 hits and 43 RBI, while Kazuma Okamoto and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. have combined for 215 hits and 118 RBI.
Max Scherzer gets the ball for the Toronto Blue Jays, and he is 1-5 with a 6.59 ERA and 31 strikeouts this season. Scherzer is 6-3 with a 2.41 ERA and 80 strikeouts in his career against the Tampa Bay Rays.
Tampa Bay Rays Betting Preview
The Tampa Bay Rays are 75-50 on the year and play the Orioles and Tigers next. The Tampa Bay Rays are batting .262 on the season, have a .332 OBP, and have a .408 slugging percentage. The Tampa Bay Rays’ pitching staff has a 3.83 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP. Yandy Diaz leads the Tampa Bay Rays with 145 hits and 70 RBI, while Chandler Simpson and Jonathan Aranda have combined for 268 hits and 101 RBI.
Drew Rasmussen gets the ball for the Tampa Bay Rays, and he is 12-5 with a 2.78 ERA and 133 strikeouts this season. Rasmussen is 4-4 with a 3.04 ERA and 46 strikeouts in his career against the Toronto Blue Jays.
Why the Tampa Bay Rays will win
- The Blue Jays have lost 12 of their last 13 night games at Tropicana Field following a road win.
- The Rays have won 10 of their last 11 night games against the Blue Jays at Tropicana Field following a home loss.
- The Rays have covered the run line in each of their last nine Wednesday games.
- The Blue Jays have failed to cover the run line in each of their last five night games at Tropicana Field following a road win.
- The Rays have led after 3 innings in each of their last seven Wednesday games as favorites.
- The Rays have led after 5 innings in each of their last seven Wednesday games as favorites.
Why the Toronto Blue Jays will win
- The underdogs have won each of the last five games between the Blue Jays and Rays.
- The Rays have lost six of their last seven games as favorites against AL East opponents.
- The road team has covered the run line in each of the Rays’ last 18 games.
- The Rays have failed to cover the run line in each of their last nine home games.
- The Rays have trailed after 5 innings in each of their last four games.
- The Blue Jays have won the first inning in each of their last three games against the Rays.
Total Runs Facts
- Each of the Blue Jays’ last six games as road underdogs have gone OVER the total runs line.
- Eight of the Rays’ last nine games as favorites against American League opponents have gone OVER the total runs line.
- There has been at least one run scored in the first inning in each of the last four games between the Blue Jays and Rays.
- There has been no run scored during the first inning in six of the Blue Jays’ last seven night games against American League opponents.
Tampa Bay Rays Player Prop Facts
- Drew Rasmussen has recorded eight or more strikeouts in three of his last four appearances.
- Drew Rasmussen has recorded a win in each of his last five appearances.
- Chandler Simpson has recorded at least one hit in each of his last 13 appearances with the Rays as favorites.
- Ryan Vilade has hit a home run in two of the Rays’ last three games.
- Chandler Simpson ranks 2nd in the league in Steals (35) this season.
Toronto Blue Jays Player Prop Facts
- Alejandro Kirk has hit a home run in each of the Blue Jays’ last two night games.
- Max Scherzer has recorded a win in six of his last eight appearances against the Rays.
- Max Scherzer has recorded four or more strikeouts in each of his last 13 appearances with his team as a road underdog against AL East opponents.
- Alejandro Kirk has recorded at least one hit in each of his last 14 appearances against AL East opponents that held a winning record.
Matchup/League Facts
- The Rays rank 1st in the league for batting average this season (.262).
- The Rays rank 1st in the league for strikeouts against this season (886).
- The Blue Jays rank 30th in the league for triples this season (7).
- The Blue Jays rank 29th in the league for home runs this season (119).
Rays vs Blue Jays Prediction
The Rays have been fantastic at home this season and are hard to bet against. Scherzer is a Hall of Famer, but he’s a shell of himself at this stage, where he has a 6.59 ERA and 1.46 WHIP through 41 innings. Rasmussen has been one of the better pitchers in baseball over the last two years, and he has a 0.91 WHIP through 129.1 innings. I know the Jays are fighting for their playoff lives, but there’s a gap between the arms in this spot. I’ll side with the Rays and lay the RL to shave down the price.