Boston Red Sox ace Chris Sale isn’t having his typical season whatsoever. He has great career numbers against the Toronto Blue Jays but not in 2019. Still, he and the Red Sox will be heavy MLB Betting favorites against Toronto on Thursday afternoon.
How to Bet Blue Jays vs Red Sox MLB Odds & Game Info
- When: Thursday, 1:05 PM ET
- Where: Fenway Park
- Probable pitchers (away/home): Sean Reid-Foley/Chris Sale
- TV: MLB Network
- Live Stream: MLB.tv
- Radio: 104.5 The Team
- MLB Odds: TBA
Why Bet on Toronto?
Toronto batters have hit .244 while on the road this season (12th in the AL). The Jays have scored 4.36 runs/game in road tilts (11th). Blue Jays pitchers have posted a 4.87 ERA while on the road this year (9th in the AL) to go with a .269 opponents’ batting average (12th).
Toronto remains without one of the best closers in the majors this year in Ken Giles – he could be traded by July 31 and is close to returning (he might have Wednesday). Giles threw a 20-pitch bullpen session on Tuesday afternoon. Blue Jays pitching coach Pete Walker told reporters after the workout that Giles’ fastball “had lots of life” and that his slider was moving well. The hard-throwing closer hadn’t pitched since July 4 due to nerve inflammation around his right elbow, which came about during a bad massage over the All-Star break. Giles has a 1.45 ERA this year.
The Jays made a trade this week, acquiring RHP Wilmer Font from the Mets for cash considerations. Font was designated for assignment by New York last Friday after posting a 4.94 ERA in three starts and 12 relief appearances. Toronto has big holes in both the rotation and the bullpen.
The Blue Jays were scheduled to start Clayton Richard here but had to put him on the injured list Saturday. Richard’s lat injury was labeled merely as tightness when he exited Saturday’s start against the Yankees after two innings, but a follow-up MRI revealed that he was dealing with a strain. The grade of the strain hasn’t been revealed, making it difficult to gauge how much longer than the 10-day minimum Richard might be sidelined.
So, it’s not 100 percent clear who takes his spot here, but it’s likely to be Sean Reid-Foley (0-1). Though Reid-Foley acquitted himself decently enough in his first four outings (two starts) with Toronto this season (3.55 ERA, 1.34 WHIP in 12.2 innings), he’s struggled to find the strike zone consistently at Buffalo. Over 76 innings with the Triple-A affiliate, Reid-Foley has issued a whopping 60 walks.
Team Stats
Offense- Runs: 4.32
- Hits: 7.88
- Walks: 3.07
- Strike Outs: 9.00
- Runs: 5.21
- Hits: 9.18
- Walks: 3.76
- Strike Outs: 8.10
Why Bet on Boston?
Red Sox manager Alex Cora acknowledged after Tuesday’s game that there is lingering concern about Heath Hembree’s health. Hembree missed most of June with a right elbow extensor strain and his fastball velocity is down about 2.5 mph since his activation from the injured list on July 4. The setup man surrendered three earned runs on three hits while recording zero outs in a relief appearance Tuesday against the Blue Jays as his season ERA jumped from 2.53 to 3.38. However, Hembree has informed Cora that he feels fine physically.
Boston’s Chris Sale (3-9) was charged with the loss Saturday against the Dodgers after surrendering five runs on seven hits across 4.2 innings. He struck out seven and walked one. Sale gave up five earned runs for the third straight start and was unable to complete five innings for the first time since early April. The veteran left-hander is in the midst of the worst season of his career by a significant margin with a 4.27 ERA, 1.10 WHIP and 160:27 K:BB through 111.2 innings. Sale and the Astros’ Gerrit Cole lead MLB with 10 games of 10+ SO this season. Sale ranks 2nd in MLB with 12.90 SO/9.0 IP and T-3rd with 160 SO.
Sale will try to win at Fenway Park for the first time since July 11, 2018. He is 7-4 with a 3.07 ERA in 15 career starts vs. Toronto. But in three starts vs. Toronto this year, Sale has a 7.98 ERA and .359 opponent AVG (14.2 IP, 13 ER, 23 H). In his previous 7 starts vs. Toronto since joining Boston, he had a 2.30 ERA.
Team Stats
Offense- Runs: 5.65
- Hits: 9.65
- Walks: 3.88
- Strike Outs: 8.38
- Runs: 5.13
- Hits: 8.81
- Walks: 3.44
- Strike Outs: 10.10
Blue Jays vs Red Sox MLB Betting Trends
- Over is 3-0-1 in Sale’s last 4 home starts vs. Blue Jays
- Blue Jays are 10-29 in their last 39 road games vs. a left-handed starter
- Red Sox are 1-4 in Sale’s last 5 home starts vs. a team with a losing record
- Blue Jays are 2-7 SU in their last 9 games on the road
- The total has gone UNDER in 8 of Toronto’s last 11 games this season
- Red Sox are 6-1 SU in their last 7 games against an opponent in the American League
- The total has gone OVER in 4 of Boston’s last 5 games at home
Expert Final Score Prediction Blue Jays vs Red Sox
Toronto Blue Jays 3 – Boston Red Sox 6
