The American League East’s bottom feeders, the Boston Red Sox (27-31) and Baltimore Orioles (26-30), meet each other Tuesday night for the start of a three-game series at Camden Yards. Will Boston extend its win streak? Or will the Orioles move a game closer out of the division’s cellar?
Read on for our preview of this in-division showdown. Meanwhile, check out our preview of the interleague clash between the Chicago Cubs and Detroit Tigers here.
[sc:MLBArticles ]Boston Red Sox vs. Baltimore Orioles Preview
Where: Camden Yards, Baltimore
When: Tuesday, June 9, 2015, 7:05 PM ET
Line: Boston Red Sox vs. Baltimore Orioles – view all MLB lines
Betting on the Boston Red Sox
[sc:MLB240banner ]Sure, the Yankees are on a roll, but rival Boston is on a winning streak of its own in the AL East. Having swept the A’s in a previous three-game series at home, the Red Sox fly to Baltimore, where they intend to continue their success. The Red Sox are 5-5 in their last 10 games at Camden Yards.
Boosting the team’s confidence on Tuesday is the presence of up and comer Eduardo Rodriguez. Rodriguez has been the talk of Beantown since he was called up from the minors late May. In two starts thus far in his MLB career, Rodriguez has a 2-0 record, a ridiculous 0.61 ERA, and an equally astonishing 0.61 WHIP. He showed just how powerful his stuff is when he combed through Minnesota’s lineup to the tune of one run on two hits in seven innings in Boston’s 6-3 win on Saturday.
But with a couple of starts already under his belt, Rodriguez will be up against a Baltimore squad that has already scouted him.
Backing Rodriguez is Boston’s offense that is third in the majors this month in hits (69) and in batting average (.300). Xander Bogaerts has been a big contributor on offense this June, as he is 13-for-25 (.520) over the Red Sox’s last seven games. Hanley Ramirez, meanwhile, is 8-for-25(.320) with four homers in seven games played against Baltimore so far this season.
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Betting on the Baltimore Orioles
After picking up a loss against Houston on Saturday, Miguel Gonzalez (5-4, 3.54 ERA) will face a team he’s repeatedly beaten in his career. Since breaking into the majors in 2012, Gonzalez has collected a 5-1 record and an ERA of 3.17 in 10 starts against the Red Sox.
He didn’t do great, however, in his previous start against Boston, allowing four runs on eight hits in six innings of work in the Orioles’ 7-5 home loss on April 24. Nevertheless, Gonzalez has been solid when pitching at Camden Yards thus far this season, as he holds an unblemished 3-0 record and a 2.52 ERA in five home starts. In addition, Baltimore is 3-1 in Gonzalez’s last four home starts against the Red Sox.
Baltimore’s offense, meanwhile, will get its first look at Boston’s young pitcher, Rodriguez. The Orioles’ lineup came alive in Saturday’s 7-3 win at Cleveland. Orioles catcher Matt Wieters continued to hit well since being reactivated from the 60-day disabled list, as he went 2-for-5, including a homer. Wieters is now 5-for-12 with three RBIs in his last three games.
Outfielder Adam Jones, who paces the Orioles in batting average with a .311 clip, has hit .452 (12-for-29) in seven games played against Boston this season.
Writer’s Prediction
Baltimore wins, 4-3.
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