The Tampa Bay Rays will begin their road trip with a visit to Target Field to take on the Minnesota Twins in the first game of the series. The Rays are currently second in the sport with a 34-23 record and are riding a three-game winning streak as they have righty Drew Rasmussen on the bump. He is coming off a no-decision against the Chicago White Sox, where he went seven shutout innings with three hits while giving up a walk and striking out two batters.
The Twins are still atop the AL Central with a 33-26 record and are coming off a loss against the New York Yankees, and have southpaw Devin Smeltzer pitching as he did not factor into the decision against the Toronto Blue Jays where he went four innings and allowed two runs on four hits with two walks and a strikeout.
Rays at Twins Stats
Tampa Bay Rays Stats
The Tampa Bay Rays are a good team, but not because of their offensive stroke this season, as they are 24th in the sport with a .673 OPS. Despite that, they are still scoring runs as they are averaging 4.21 runs per game. First baseman Ji-Man Choi has been leading Tampa Bay as he has an .851 OPS with five homers and 29 RBI so far. He has been doing pretty well in his last 15 games at the plate as he is 16-for-52 with three home runs and 14 RBI with seven walks and 16 strikeouts in that stretch of games.
Drew Rasmussen has been a good pitcher but is struggling on the road this season as he is 2-2 with a 5.14 ERA in six five road starts. That will make their MLB odds for this game a little more favorable for some bettors as he struggles outside of Tropicana Field. He has been a middle-of-the-road pitcher, according to his Baseball Savant page, and throws four pitches (cutter, fastball, slider, curveball). His slider has been his putaway pitch, as he has a .188 batting average and 23 strikeouts against it.
Minnesota Twins Stats
The Minnesota Twins have been one of the best offensive teams in the majors this season as their offense is carrying the team. They are currently tied with the Atlanta Braves for sixth in MLB with a .734 OPS while also scoring a solid 4.46 runs per game. Center fielder Byron Buxton has been one of the better players in the leagues he has been on a tear. On the season, he has an .878 OPS with 15 home runs and 28 RBI, and in his last seven games, he is clicking as he has a 370/.469/.889 slash line with four home runs and seven RBI to get clicking.
Devin Smeltzer has been one of the best pitchers inside of a hitter-friendly Target Field as he has two starts at home and has thrown 10 innings and allowed just one run (0.75 ERA in those games). He throws five different pitches (fastball, changeup, curveball, slider, sinker), with his curveball being the most hit pitch as it has a .278 batting average and a .444 slugging percentage against it.
Matchup Information
Rays at Twins Betting Trends
The MLB betting trends are telling us that the Tampa Bay Rays are the better team, and this means that history is giving us some pointers as well. Below are a couple of the trends heading into Friday’s game:
- Tampa Bay is 5-0 in their last five games vs. a team with a winning record
- Tampa Bay is 10-3 in their last 13 games vs. a starter with a WHIP less than 1.15
- Minnesota is 1-4 in their last five games vs. a right-handed starter
- Minnesota is 0-4 in their last four games after scoring 5+ runs in their previous game
Rays at Twins Predictions
The Tampa Bay Rays have been the better team, and a lot of this is with their pitching staff. As a franchise, the Rays are not afraid to implement their bullpen and as a staff, as they are fourth in the sport with a team 3.20 ERA, while the Twins are pitching to a 3.83 team ERA, which is 15th in the majors.
Tampa Bay has scored 4.8 runs per game in their previous five games, proving they can score to complement their pitching staff. All in all, go with the Tampa Bay Rays to win on the road to open this series as one of my MLB picks today!
Conclusion
The Tampa Bay Rays have a better record while competing in a tougher division. The Twins have struggled lately as they are coming off a game in which they led 7-3 on Thursday and lost the game. The Rays have been a juggernaut and should be able to dominate here.
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