With the AL East still knotted up, the Boston Red Sox (27-31, -$995) and Baltimore Orioles (26-30, -$402) will look for some traction in their three game set, with the middle game on Wednesday.
Neither team has played particularly inspired ball of late, though perhaps each team is beginning to turn things around.
ODDS ANALYSIS
The Red Sox will enter their series with the Birds having won five of their last seven and completing a three-game sweep of the Oakland Athletics over the weekend. Prior to that, however, Boston dropped six of seven and nine of 12.
Meanwhile, the Orioles have won three of their last four games following a five game losing skid.
Head-to-head, the Orioles have won four of the first seven games this season, outscoring the Red Sox 43-32, though much of that is a result of their 18-7 victory in their last meeting back on April 26.
These two teams are much different than they were back in April with each having some offensive struggles. Each were near the bottom of baseball in runs scored in May, but have begun turning things around. The Orioles are still just 21st while the Red Sox are 15th, but that is an improvement.
PITCHING MATCHUP
Rick Porcello takes the hill in this middle game of three. The former Tiger was supposed to be the closest thing to an ace that this team has, but with a 4-5 record and 5.01 ERA over 70 innings, he has yet to live up to that billing.
The 26-year old right-hander had a break out year for Detroit last season with 15 wins and a 3.43 ERA, showing the ability is there, but he has just six quality starts in his 11 appearances. He is, however, coming off a good outing against the Twins, holding them to just two runs on five hits and no walks through eight innings of work. Despite the good stats, it was his third straight loss.
On the other side, Wei-Yin Chen gets the ball for the O’s. Much like Porcello, Chen’s run support has been limited so far.
The crafty left-hander has a 3.18 ERA and 1.147 WHIP in 68 innings, but is just 1-4 on the year.
He’s thrown against the Sox twice this year, holding them scoreless in just four and a third innings in his first outing as Boston made him work, but threw eight innings of two run ball in his second appearance against them.
In his career, Chen has a 3.79 ERA against Boston while Porcello has a 5.21 ERA versus Baltimore.
QUOTE TO NOTE
The Orioles have been looking for a spark most of the season and the return of catcher Matt Wieters may be just that.
Centerfield Adam Jones knows the importance of Wieters to this team. In a quote after the O’s Sunday win in Cleveland, Jones spoke about the catcher, saying:
“I’ve played seven years with the man, so it’s good to see him back hitting behind me.”
LIVE/SITUATIONAL BETTING
Wieters had a very strong series in his return to the diamond, hitting 5 for 12 with a double and a home run while driving in three.
The veteran catcher provides a nice spark for a team with quite a few holes in their lineup. Adding him to the middle of the order along with Adam Jones (.857 OPS) who is himself beginning to heat back up provides a formidable one-two punch with Chris Davis (.778 OPS) offering power (12 home runs) to back them up.
At the top of the order, the O’s have dubbed Manny Machado (.775 OPS) as their lead-off man. While not a stereotypical guy up top, he does lead the team in steals with eight and his OBP, while not great, is improved at .322.
For the Sox, Pablo Sandoval has gone ice cold and is now hitting just .244. David Ortiz, meanwhile, has looked his age with a .673 OPS and just six home runs. Sprinkle in a disappointing first couple months for Mookie Betts (.672 OPS) and Blake Swihart (.527 OPS) and it isn’t hard to see why the team’s offense hasn’t lived up to expectations.
PROP TALK
With Porcello’s inflated ERA against Baltimore in his career, it’s not surprising that many Orioles players have had some success against the righty.
One such Oriole is Davis who is 6 for 23 and while that is just a .261 average, three of those six hits have left the yard with one other one being a double. He’s struck out seven times as well, but has been able to square up Porcello.
As for the newly returned and red-hot Wieters, he is 4 for 13 against him while Jimmy Paredes is 4 for 7, J.J. Hardy is 8 for 20 and Delmon Young is 9 for 29. Paredes and Young each also have a home run.
ANALYSIS AND PREDICTION
These two teams are very similar. Both have the players to be better than they are and both have shown signs of turning things around over the last couple games.
In this one, I am going with the Orioles as Chen has outpitched Porcello on the year. The return of Wieters also signals the O’s solid offensive performance on Sunday may be more sustainable. Baltimore also has a slightly better bullpen with a superior ERA and better defense, particularly in the infield.
Baltimore 5, Boston 3
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Load your betting bankroll from your smartphone with BookMaker’s new cashier feature! Depositing and withdrawing funds from your account has never been easier. BookMaker's live betting platform means you always have access to odds and lines to every sporting event. Click here and start wagering today! First pitch for the game between the Boston Red Sox and Baltimore Orioles is scheduled for Wednesday, June 10, 2015, at 7:05 p.m. ET at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. The matchup can be seen live on ESPN.
