The race in the American League East is coming down to the wire. Toronto’s lead has slowly eroded to the New York Yankees, and the two squads are now tied after Wednesday night’s action. Meanwhile, the Boston Red Sox remain in the division hunt after a victory on Wednesday, while remaining firmly in the Wild Card race. It’s all but guaranteed that three American League East teams will finish in a playoff position. The order, however, is very much up in the air. Thursday’s matchup will go a long way toward deciding that order.
The Blue Jays come in as -150 moneyline favorites on DraftKings Sportsbook. The total is set at eight runs. Let’s dig into a preview, prediction and best bet for this Red Sox vs. Blue Jays matchup.
Red Sox at Blue Jays prediction, preview
In this crucial contest, the Red Sox will send one of their most consistent starters to the mound in Brayan Bello. Though the underlying numbers indicate he’s been a bit lucky, Bello has a 3.34 ERA through 161.2 innings. His sinker-sweeper combo continues to induce a ton of ground balls, and his defense has performed well enough to keep the high rate of balls in play from burning him.
But he does come in to this matchup cold. Bello has surrendered 3+ earned runs in four straight turns on the mound. Up against a Blue Jays lineup full of potent bats, that could spell trouble.
Toronto will turn to Louis Varland as an opener. With Shane Bieber needing an extra day of rest, Varland will kick the game off before giving way to the long relievers. Jose Berrios or Eric Lauer, who have seen plenty of starts this year, will get the bulk of the innings. That makes this game awfully difficult to predict.
Sometimes, you have to let the vibes take control. Boston is storming through the finish line while the Blue Jays falter. With the uncertainty of a bullpen game on the docket, I like Boston’s value as a road underdog.
