Clay Buchholz will be on the the mound looking for his first win against Minnesota in over three years when the Boston Red Sox take on the Twins on Tuesday night as the -131 moneyline favorites at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
The Red Sox kicked off a seven-game road trip on Monday with a loss to Minnesota, dropping a 7-2 decision, ending the club’s brief two-game winning streak. However, with the division-leading Tampa Bay Rays losing 4-1 to the Seattle Mariners on Monday, Boston remains just 2 1/2 games back in the underachieving American League East.
It has been a difficult stretch for all five clubs in the AL East division, with the Baltimore Orioles the only team having played .500 baseball over their last 10 games.
The division’s mediocrity has been a saving grace for Boston, which enters Tuesday night’s Red Sox vs. Twins betting matchup at Target Field within striking distance of the division lead despite its disappointing 21-24 record.
Buchholz takes the field on Tuesday in pursuit of just his second victory since picking up the win in Boston’s season opener in Philadelphia. However, the 30-year-old’s 2-5 record is somewhat deceiving as the Red Sox have scored just one run in five of his last seven starts, earning him three losses along the way.
The Red Sox’s lack of run production is becoming old news. With the exception of a Memorial Day weekend series with the Los Angeles Angels, during which they put on a rare offensive display by scoring 19 total runs while winning two of three against the Halos, Boston hitters have struggled at the plate, producing three runs or fewer in 12 of their previous 16 games.
After wrapping up their three-game set in Minnesota, the Red Sox travel to Texas for a four-game weekend series against the red-hot Rangers.
Texas has caught fire since struggling through a brutal April in which it won just seven games. The Rangers enter their Tuesday night clash with the Cleveland Indians riding a six-game winning streak, improving to 22-23 on the season to sit 6 1/2 games back of the AL West-leading Houston Astros.
The Rangers’ recent strong play, however, has yet to boost their World Series odds at the sportsbooks, where they have tumbled to 250-1 after opening the season at 50-1.
The Los Angeles Dodgers and Washington Nationals continue to lead the way on the World Series odds, deadlocked at 13-2, closely followed by the Kansas City Royals at 15-2. The St. Louis Cardinals trail at 8-1, followed by the Detroit Tigers at 10-1, while the Red Sox remain stalled in the middle of the pack at 25-1.
Thumbnail photo via Winslow Townson/USA TODAY Sports Images
