Ballpark Figures – Week 24

VegasInsider Staff Sports Betting Expert

8 minute read

Rays Up
The Tampa Bay Rays have been red hot lately, winning eight of their past 10 and 16 of the past 19 overall. Unfortunately, they're in the same division as the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees, so their path to the division title is clearly blocked. They're 14 games over .500, but still eight games back of the Oakland Athletics for a postseason spot with just 20 games remaining. In other words, they're still mathematically alive, but they're on life support. They're a dangerous team no one wants to face, including the Cleveland Indians. The Rays took two of three from the Indians from Aug. 31-Sept. 2 in Cleveland, including a game started by RHP Diego Castillo against RHP Carlos Carrasco as a +190 underdog last Sunday.

RHP Corey Kluber will take the ball for the Indians, and he is looking to stay hot. The Indians are 13-4 in Kluber's past 17 starts against American League East Division clubs. In addition, the Tribe is 23-9 in the past 32 road starts and 36-16 in his past 52 while working on four days of rest. The Indians are also 7-1 in his past eight starts on Monday, for whatever that's worth. Cleveland is also 20-7 in his past 27 starts when opening up a new series. The Indians have won 17 of their past 22 overall on the road against right-handed starting pitchers, too, while going 5-2 in their past seven tries on astroturf.

For the Rays, they're 20-7 in their past 27 against teams with a winning record, as they refuse to lose. They're also 19-7 in the past 26 against a right-handed starting pitcher while going 23-7 in their past 30 at Tropicana Field vs. RHP. The team has been hot when Castillo is on the hill, too, going 5-0 in his past five starts, including 4-0 in his past four against teams with an overall winning mark. The Rays are hot against AL Central foes, too, going 6-1 in the past seven, while going 14-3 in the past 17 at home against teams with a winning road record. The 'over' has been the play for both of these teams lately, too, going 7-1 in Kluber's past eight road starts and 17-7-1 in his past 25 outings overall. The over is 4-0 in the past four overall and 5-1 in Tampa's past six at home vs. RHP.

Looking Ahead

Monday, Sept. 10
The Marlins will face the Mets at CitiField, and Miami is well rested after being rained out on Sunday. They could use the rest, as they're 3-8 over the past 11 games, including 0-4 in the past four games. The last time the Marlins were successful on the road was Aug. 19 in Washington. Miami heads into the battle 7-16 across the past 23 inside the division, and they're 1-5 in the past six tries against teams iwth a losing overall record. For the Mets, they're also playing out the string. However, they have come alive inside the division, winning six of their past eight tries against NL East foes. New York is also 9-2 in the past 11 vs. RHP and 6-2 in their past eight at home against righties.The 'under' has hit in six of the past seven meetings at Citi Field, and 6-2-2 in the past 10 meetings in this series.

The Pirates and Cardinals square off at Busch Stadium II in a good pitching matchup between RHP Trevor Williams and RHP Adam Wainwright. St. Louis is hanging around in the playoff picture, while the Bucs have won five in a row and would love to play spoiler to their division mates. The Pirates have won four of the past five inside the NL Central, but they're a dismal 3-9 in their past 12 against teams with an overall winning mark. They're also 3-8 in the past 11 road outings vs. RHP. The Cards have won 21 of the past 30 overall while winning 16 of their past 23 vs. RHP. The under has been the overwhelming trend for both of these teams lately, going 19-6-1 in the past 26 for Pittsburgh and 13-6 in the past 19 for St. Louis. the under is 4-0 in Williams' past four road outings and 15-5-1 in the past 21 inside the Central. The under is 3-0-1 in Waino's past five outings and 8-2-1 in the past 11 at home vs. RHP.

St. Louis has won five of the past six with Wainwright on the hill against Pittsburgh while going 10-1 in the past 11 home starts against the Bucs. The under has hit in four straight in this series and is 4-1-1 in Williams' past six outings against the Cards, too.

The Braves will use LHP Sean Newcomb opposite rookie RHP Dereck Rodriguez in a good pitching matchup in the series opener in Frisco. Atlanta has been red hot on the road against RHP, winning eight of their past nine. They're also 14-4 in their past 18 against teams with a losing record. They have won eight of Newcomb's past 10 against losing clubs, too, including a perfect 6-0 in the past six road starts aginst teams with a losing overall mark. The Giants are 1-4 in D-Rod's past five outings, and 1-4 in his past five at home, too. Pudge's son appears to have hit the wall after a great start to his rookie campaign.

Weather Report
After a soggy weekend it appears the weather should be rather favorable on Monday. The Nationals and Phillies face a 30 percent chance of rain, but they should be more than fine. For the Marlins-Mets, that might be the only game with a decent chance of a delay. The forecast calls for a 60 percent chance of rain, but there is a 100 percent chance most fans wouldn't miss it if this game is never played. All other MLB venues look pleasant.

Tuesday, Sept. 11
The Blue Jays and Red Sox will square off at Fenway Park as LHP Chris Sale toes the slab. Toronto has been horrendous against lefties all season, and they're 6-25 in the past 31 vs. LHP. They're also just 1-5 in the past six inside the division, 2-8 in the past 10 on the road and 1-6 in the past six inside the division. Aaron Sanchez has been competitve, however, and the Jay have been winners in six of his past seven outings while going 4-1 in his past five on five days of rest. The Red Sox have won seven straight starts with Sale on the hill, while going 4-0 in the past four against AL East clubs. They're also 22-7 across his past 29 outings against teams with a losing record. Boston is 13-6 in the past 19 starts by Sale at home, too.

The Brewers and Cubs continue their key NL Central series at Wrigley Field with RHP Jhoulys Chacin squaring off against LHP Jose Quintana. Milwaukee has been hot lately against southpaws, winning six of their past seven vs. LHP. They're in great shape when Chacin is pitching lately, too, as they're 4-1 in the past five road outings with the righty. They're also 18-8 over his past 26 starts and 7-3 in his past 10 starts against teams with a winning record. The Brewers have struggled with him on the hill against divisional foes, however, winning just twice in his past eight tries. The Cubs are 11-4 in their past 15 vs. RHP and 16-5 in Quintana's past 21 at Wrigley Field. The Brewers have won five of the past seven meetings with the Cubs, although Chicago is 5-1 in Q's past six against the Brew Crew.

The Braves will look to keep the Giants down, turning to RHP Mike Foltynewicz. They're 14-4 in their past 18 games against teams with a losing record, including five of Folty's past seven starts against losing sides. However, the Braves have dropped each of his past four outings and six straight against NL West foes. The Giants entered the new week on an eight-game losing streak,  while going 0-5 in the past five vs. RHP. San Francisco has also failed in seven straight against teams with a winning record. The under has cashed in 13 of the past 16 for Atlanta against teams iwth a losing record, and the under is 4-1 in the past five starts by Foltynewicz against NL West clubs. The under is also 5-0 in the past five on the road against a team with a losing record.

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