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The Tampa Bay Rays (73-50) and Los Angeles Angels (60-62) open a 3-game set Friday at Angel Stadium. First pitch is scheduled for 9:38 p.m. ET (MLB Network). Let’s analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s lines around the Rays vs. Angels odds and make our expert MLB picks and predictions for the best bets.
Season series: First meeting since Rays won the 2022 series 5-2
The Rays won 6-1 as +105 favorites at the San Francisco Giants Wednesday. Tampa Bay has won 4 of its last 6 contests and is in 1st place in the AL Wild Card standings.
The Angels won 2-0 as +158 underdogs at the Texas Rangers Wednesday. DH Shohei Ohtani hit his AL-leading 42nd HR of the season as the Angels won for just the 2nd time in their last 6 games. The Angels are 7 games behind the Toronto Blue Jays for the final AL Wild Card spot.
Rays at Angels projected starters
RHP Erasmo Ramírez vs. LHP Tyler Anderson
Ramírez (2-3, 5.72 ERA) makes his 2nd start and 29th appearance. He has a 1.58 WHIP, 1.6 BB/9 and 4.8 K/9 in 39 1/3 innings with the Washington Nationals and the Rays.
- Last outing: No-decision, 1 IP, 2 ER, 4 H, 0 BB, 0 K in relief during 7-0 loss at Giants Tuesday
- Last start: No-decision, 3 IP, 1 ER, 3 H, 1 BB, 3 K in 10-6 victory at Detroit Tigers Aug. 6
- 2023 road stats: 2-1, 6.64 ERA (20 1/3 IP, 15 ER) in 1 start and 15 relief appearances
- Career vs. Angels: 4-2, 2.53 ERA (64 IP, 18 ER) over 9 starts and 7 relief appearances
- 2023 vs. Angels: 0-0, 0.00 ERA (1 IP), 0 H, 0 BB, 1 K in 1 relief appearance, a 3-2 road loss with Nationals April 12
Anderson (5-4, 5.28 ERA) makes his 21st start and 22nd appearance. He has a 1.52 WHIP, 3.9 BB/9 and 7.6 K/9 in 109 innings.
- Last start: Loss, 4 2/3 IP, 7 ER, 6 H, 3 BB, 6 K in 11-3 loss at Houston Astros Saturday
- 2023 home stats: 3-1, 4.80 ERA (45 IP, 24 ER) in 9 starts
- Career vs. Rays: 1-0, 5.68 ERA (6 1/3 IP, 4 ER), 5 H, 3 BB, 3 K in 1 start, a 7-4 home victory with Colorado Rockies July 18, 2016
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Rays at Angels odds
Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 7:17 a.m. ET.
- Moneyline (ML): Rays -110 (bet $110 to win $100) | Angels -110 (bet $110 to win $100)
- Run line (RL)/Against the spread (ATS): Rays -1.5 (+145) | Angels +1.5 (-175)
- Over/Under (O/U): 9 (O: -120 | U: +100)
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Rays at Angels picks and predictions
Prediction
Angels 4, Rays 3
Moneyline
Anderson should bounce back at home after allowing a season-high 7 earned runs last time out.
Ramírez hasn’t looked great in his last 2 outings (4 1/3 IP, 5 ER) and may struggle vs. the Angels, who should be confident coming off an impressive win at the AL West-leading Rangers.
BET ANGELS (-110).
Run line/Against the spread
Angels +1.5 (-175) should hit, but there’s no need to pay the higher price on the run line when the Halos should win straight up.
PASS. Bet the moneyline and/or the total instead.
Over/Under
The Angels have scored 4 or fewer runs in 7 straight games, and Anderson has allowed 4 or fewer earned runs in 7 of his last 8 starts. The Under is also 32-26-3 (55.2%) this season in Rays road games, according to Teamrankings.com.
BET UNDER 9 (+100).
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