Boston Red Sox at Tampa Bay Rays Betting Preview

Two of the best teams in baseball are set to meet up on Sunday night when the Tampa Bay Rays host the Boston Red Sox. The Rays have won the first two games of this series, and that has allowed them to move into first place in the AL East. 

Boston came to Tampa Bay with the best record in the AL East, but that is no longer the case. The Red Sox are still an impressive 63-43 on the season, but they are now in second place in the division. 

Tampa Bay has been keeping pressure on Boston all season long, and the Rays have finally caught up to them. The Rays were in the World Series a season ago and appeared to be good enough to get there again. 

The Tampa Bay Rays are the betting favorites at -148 on the money line for this showdown on Sunday Night Baseball.

Rays Scoring Runs

Tampa Bay has been a great offensive team so far in this series, and that has been the case for the entire second half of the season. The Rays have now actually tied the Red Sox for total runs after trailing in that category by a wide margin for much of the year. 

Austin Meadows has been a great offensive performer for the Rays so far this season, leading the way with 76 RBIs and also blasting 20 home runs. This team doesn't really have anyone with a high batting average, but they continue to get clutch hits when they need it. 

Tampa Bay does have a team ERA of 3.53 on the season, and their entire pitching staff continues to perform.

Red Sox Need Pitching

The Red Sox have given up a total of 16 runs so far in this series, and they have to find a way to get some outs. Boston has struggled to find starting pitching all season long, and they have a team ERA of 4.20.

Nick Pivetta makes a start on Sunday night, and he is one of the best that the Red Sox has to offer. Pivetta has gone 8-4 with a 4.51 ERA this season, and he needs to deliver for the Red Sox. 

The offense for Boston has cooled off a bit as well, but this team can really slug. Xander Bogaerts leads the team with a .309 batting average, and Rafael Devers has hit 27 home runs and driven in 82 runs. 

Red Sox Just Too Much Offense

The Red Sox have struggled to find ways to get the Tampa Bay Rays out in this series, and it will be up to Nick Pivetta on Sunday. Even if this trend continues on Sunday night, look for the Red Sox to have enough offense to win this game.

Boston has been wearing out opposing starters all season long, and this team is due for a huge offensive performance. Tampa Bay has done what they needed to do in this series, but they won’t be able to come away with the sweep.

This should be the most competitive game of the series, but it will be the first win for Boston. Bet the Red Sox money line over the Rays on Sunday Night Baseball. 

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