Tampa Bay Rays vs. Detroit Tigers – Major League Baseball – Betting Preview and Prediction – July 4, 2014

In a stellar display across the field, the Detroit Tigers dominated the Tampa Bay Rays 8-1 in their four-game series opener at Comerica Park. The Tigers showed why they were AL Central’s current top team turning back Tampa Bay. However, will the excellent showing leave Detroit sleeping on their opponents?

Read on for a complete analysis of this matchup between the dominating Detroit Tigers and the persistent Tampa Bay Rays. You can also check out our MLB Free Picks for the best five baseball games of the day.
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Tampa Bay Rays vs. Detroit Tigers, Major League Baseball, Betting Preview and Prediction

Where: Comerica Park, Detroit

When: July 4, 7:00 PM ET

Line: Tampa Bay Rays (+108) vs. Detroit Tigers (-118); total 8.0 – view all MLB lines

Betting on the Tampa Bay Rays

Tampa Bay cannot seem to catch a breath of fresh air as they are starting the struggling Alex Cobb (3-6, 4.20 ERA). Cobb’s most recent outing saw him give up four runs and eight hits over five innings on Sunday against the Baltimore Orioles.  Tampa Bay is 2-5 in Cobb’s last seven starts, surrendering 28 runs.

[sc:MLB240banner ]Another bad sign for the Rays is their struggle on the plate in the first game of the series. Desmond Jennings, Ben Zobrist, Matt Joyce, Evan Longoria, James Loney and Kevin Kiermaier are all part of Tampa Bay’s top ten batters, and combine for a batting average of .265 in the current season. However, all six of them were left hitting just .105 against the Tigers.

Nevertheless, Tampa Bay will have a chance to revitalize their batting against Detroit’s starter Drew Smyly who’s struggled in his last outing giving away four runs on eight hits over 2.1 innings.

The Tampa Bay Rays are 5-1 in their last 6 games.

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Betting on the Detroit Tigers

The Detroit Tigers extended their home win streak to five with a win over the Tampa Bay Rays on Thursday. In this game they showed a stark contrast to their opponent’s hitting game, scoring eight runs from 15 hits over 37 at-bats.

One of the batters to note is Miguel Cabrera who had three hits, including a pair of doubles, and four runs in the 8-1 win over Tampa Bay.  Over the course of the last 11 meetings with the Rays, Cabrera has hit .537 with four homers, four doubles, seven RBIs and 13 runs. Another dependable batter for Detroit coming into this game is Torii Hunter. Hunter is 5-for-8 with a homer in his last two games. Over the course of his career, Hunter is 6 for 13 against Tampa Bay’s Cobb.

Detroit can have another pristine game against Tampa Bay starting Drew Smyly (4-7, 3.57 ERA) who has limited Tampa Bay to hitting .174 in his career. However, Smyly has been a disappointment for the Tigers going 2-5 in his last seven starts. If Smyly continues his rut, Tampa Bay will have a welcome opportunity to challenge Detroit in the upcoming game.

Writer’s Prediction

Smyly gets enough runs support from the Tigers’ offense as Detroit makes it two in a row against Tampa Bay. Take them at -118 for some value on your bet.
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