The Toronto Blue Jays (19-16) begin a five-game series against the rival Boston Red Sox (12-25) Thursday at Fenway Park. First pitch is set for 7:30 p.m. ET. Below, we analyze the Blue Jays-Red Sox MLB betting odds and lines, with picks and best bets.
Blue Jays at Red Sox: Projected starting pitchers
RHP Taijuan Walker vs. LHP Martin Perez
Walker: 3-2, 3.27 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, 29 K, 11 BB, 12 ER, 33 IP, 6 starts
- Pitched six scoreless innings against the Baltimore Orioles Sunday in his Blue Jays debut. Gave up three walks against just four strikeouts.
- Gave up five home runs in his five starts with the Seattle Mariners but was striking out 8.3 batters per nine innings against just 2.7 walks per nine.
Perez: 2-4, 4.58 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, 24 K, 15 BB, 18 ER, 35 1/3 IP, 7 starts
- Leads all Red Sox starters in ERA, but a 5.40 xFIP signals upcoming regression.
- Gave up six earned runs over four innings in a 10-2 Red Sox loss to the Washington Nationals in his last start.
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Blue Jays at Red Sox: Key injuries
(Get the latest injury news here.)
Blue Jays
- SS Bo Bichette (knee) out
- RP Ken Giles (forearm) out
- RP Jordan Romano (finger) out
Red Sox
- OF Andrew Benintendi (ribs) out
Also see: BaseballHQ Fantasy Baseball
Blue Jays at Red Sox: Odds, lines, picks and betting tips
MLB odds courtesy of BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports for a full list. Odds last updated at 6:05 a.m. ET.
Prediction
Blue Jays 5, Red Sox 3
Moneyline (ML)
The BLUE JAYS (-129) are coming off an uninspiring 2-1 win over the Miami Marlins Wednesday in which they were bailed out time and time again by SP Hyun-Jin Ryu. They’ll benefit from having their new No. 2 starter on the mound Thursday as Walker looks to start 2-0 as a member of the Blue Birds.
The Red Sox (+110) are underdogs at Fenway against their AL East rivals from Canada. They were just swept by the Atlanta Braves, including a 7-5 loss Wednesday.
Take TORONTO (-129) with the better starting pitcher as the Jays look to snap out of an offensive funk against the woeful Boston staff.
Run line/Against the spread (ATS)
Stick with the BLUE JAYS -1.5 (+120) on the run line where they’ll need to win by 2 or more runs for a $10 bet to return a nice and tidy $12 profit. Boston has won three of the first five head-to-head meetings this season, but Toronto is coming off a 9-1 victory Aug. 26 when the teams last met in Buffalo (the Blue Jays’ home for the 2020 season).
Even with LF J.D. Martinez back in the Sox lineup – he missed two games with a hand injury – Walker will be able to keep the BoSox at bay while the Jays bats become the latest to feast on Perez and the Boston bullpen.
Over/Under (O/U)
Largely inspired by Walker taking the mound for the Jays and the results of his debut – albeit against a lowly Orioles team – take the UNDER 10.5 (-110).
The Blue Jays have played to a total of 11 or more runs in just one of their last seven games. Four of the five meetings between the two clubs this season have played to the Under, as well.
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