Toronto Blue Jays vs. Baltimore Orioles: Odds, Prediction
The Blue Jays have had little success against the AL East-leading Orioles this season as the clubs open a big series in Baltimore on Tuesday.
The O’s are -120 favourites to win on the MLB odds.
Betting Analysis
If the Blue Jays have any shot of winning the AL East, they probably have to sweep this series. But in reality, that carrot is gone 8.5 games back of Baltimore. This would be a wild card round preview if Tampa Bay ends up winning the East and the Jays and Orioles finish 1-2 in the wild card standings. Baltimore has some spectacular young hitters, but in the playoffs you need starting pitching to advance and the Orioles don’t have that yet. The only big move to fix that ahead of the deadline was acquiring Jack Flaherty from St. Louis, and he hasn’t been particularly good with his new club.
Toronto won the season series each of the past five years but will not this year as this is the last meeting and the Orioles lead 8-2, winning by an average score of 6.0-3.1. Ryan Mountcastle is 12-for-25 with four doubles, a homer, nine RBIs and eight runs scored in the series. Adam Frazier is hitting .375 against Jays pitching with two homers, and AL Rookie of the Year favourite Gunnar Henderson has three homers and 10 RBIs.
Toronto Blue Jays
Toronto started this six-game trip winning two of three in Cincinnati. Brandon Belt went yard twice for his second multi-homer game this season in Sunday’s blowout win. Bo Bichette was 2-for-5 with a homer and triple in his second game off the injured list. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was lifted Sunday with left middle finger discomfort, but it may have simply been out of caution and with the game already out of hand. Lefty Yusei Kikuchi (9-4, 3.44 ERA) takes the mound here. He has been nothing short of brilliant since the All-Star break with a 1.29 ERA and 36 strikeouts over 35 innings. Kikuchi is 1-1 with a 3.52 ERA in three starts this year against the Orioles and is 4-5 with a 5.40 ERA in 45 career innings against them. Ryan Mountcastle is 7-for-12 off him with four homers. Adley Rutschman is 5-for-14 with two HRs.
Baltimore Orioles
The Orioles have the AL’s best record and are within striking distance of Atlanta for home-field advantage throughout the World Series. With all of the Rays’ starting pitching injuries, Baltimore should win the AL East for the first time since 2014. Gunnar Henderson should win AL Rookie of the Year as well. Baltimore returns off a West Coast trip in which it an impressive 6-3. The Orioles have gone 79 consecutive series of at least two decisions (no ties) without being swept. That is among the longest such streaks in history. Outfielder Anthony Santander hasn’t played since last Friday due to back soreness. Another outfielder, Aaron Hicks, landed back on the injured list over the weekend. It’s rookie right-hander Grayson Rodriguez (3-3, 5.44 ERA) on the mound, and he’s one of the top prospects in the sport. Rodriguez was sent down in late May after starting the season 2-2 with a 7.35 ERA in the majors but has been much better since returning. Over his past five starts, Rodriguez has posted a 2.35 ERA and 0.85 WHIP over 30.2 innings. He is 0-1 with a 4.22 ERA in 10.2 innings vs. Toronto. George Springer is 2-for-5 with a homer off him.
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