Red Sox Host Blue Jays In Weekend Betting Matchup, Looking To Escape Cellar
The Boston Red Sox will be searching for an escape from the basement in the AL East standings this weekend when they battle the red-hot Toronto Blue Jays in a series that gets underway on Friday night with Boston a slim home betting favorite at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
The Red Sox stumble into the weekend in the midst of a three-game losing streak after being swept by the Orioles in a three-game set at Camden Yards, dropping to a full seven games back of the first-place New York Yankees in the division standings.
Once again, the Red Sox bats fell silent against the O’s, producing just seven total runs on 20 hits, and have now produced two or fewer runs in nine of their last 16 contests.
Of growing concern to the Red Sox faithful is the lack of production from veteran slugger David Ortiz. Big Papi enters Friday night’s Blue Jays vs Red Sox betting matchup at Fenway Park with just one home run and six RBI on a mere 12 hits over his last 18 games, raising concerns about his future.
Conversely, the Blue Jays arrive in Boston as the hottest team in the majors. Winner of eight straight, Toronto has encountered no problems generating offense. The club has averaged 7.1 runs during its current win streak, further strengthening its position as the top offense in baseball.
Blue Jays hurlers have also been getting it done of late, surrendering greater than three runs in just two of their last 11 matchups, lifting the Jays out of the basement in AL team pitching stats — a spot now occupied by the Red Sox.
While the Blue Jays took two of three games from Boston in its most recent meeting at the Rogers Centre in early May, they have struggled in their last two visits to Fenway, going 2-4 in their last six games there according to the OddsShark MLB Database.
Toronto’s recent success has buoyed its World Series odds, which had gone into free fall following a brutal 7-15 stretch in the month of May. The Jays have rocketed to 22/1 on those odds after starting June at a distant 40/1. However, the news is not good for Boston, which continue to lose ground on the favorites, dropping to 28/1.
It remains crowded at the top of the World Series betting odds, with the Los Angeles Dodgers pegged as 7/1 favorites, closely followed by the Kansas City Royals, St. Louis Cardinals, and Washington Nationals, who each sport 15/2 odds.
The Yankees, Detroit Tigers, and San Francisco Giants round out the front of the betting pack, each with 12/1 odds to win the World Series heading into the weekend.
Thumbnail photo via Nick Turchiaro/USA TODAY Sports Images
