The Toronto Blue Jays (58-46) and Minnesota Twins (55-49) open a 4-game series Thursday at Target Field. First pitch is set for 7:40 p.m. ET. Let’s analyze Tipico Sportsbook‘s lines around the Blue Jays vs. Twins odds with MLB picks and predictions.
Season series: Twins lead Blue Jays, 2-1
The Blue Jays are 7-3 in their last 10 games, but they had a 3-game win streak snapped Wednesday in a 3-2 loss at the Tampa Bay Rays. They lead the league with a .264 team batting average.
The Twins have hit a rough patch recently, going just 5-5 in their last 10 games and winning only 8 of their last 20. They still maintain a 1-game lead in the AL Central, though.
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Blue Jays at Twins projected starters
RHP Alek Manoah vs. RHP Sonny Gray
Manoah (11-5, 2.43 ERA) makes his 21st start. He has a 0.99 WHIP, 1.9 BB/9 and 8.1 K/9 through 126 IP.
- Was surprisingly roughed up by the Detroit Tigers in his last outing, tying a season-high in runs allowed (4) and hits (7), lasting only 5 1/3 innings.
- The Blue Jays are just 2-4 in Manoah’s last 6 starts.
Gray (6-3, 3.41 ERA) makes his 16th start. He has a 1.11 WHIP, 2.3 BB/9 and 8.4 K/9 through 74 IP.
- Has allowed just 2 earned runs in his last 11 innings, striking out 12 batters in that span.
- Despite solid starts in his last 2 outings, Gray’s ERA ballooned from 2.17 to 3.41 in July.
Blue Jays at Twins odds and lines
Odds provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 12:05 p.m. ET.
- Money line (ML): Blue Jays -125 (bet $125 to win $100) | Twins +102 (bet $100 to win $102)
- Run line (RL)/Against the spread (ATS): Blue Jays -1.5 (+133) | Twins +1.5 (-165)
- Over/Under (O/U): 8.5 (O: +100 | U: -125)
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Blue Jays at Twins picks and predictions
Prediction
Blue Jays 4, Twins 3
Money line
This is a close matchup between two teams above .500 with solid pitchers on the mound. The Blue Jays have been the hotter team as of late, and I like them in this contest against a Twins team that hasn’t been putting up many runs recently.
Bet the BLUE JAYS (-125) to win outright on the road.
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Run line/Against the spread
With the lack of runs the Blue Jays have been putting up (only 22 in their last 7 games), I don’t know that they’ll plate enough runs to cover the spread against a quality pitcher like Gray.
I also don’t like the Twins +1.5 (-165) because it would require a fair amount of risk for a low return. I’m going to PASS on the run line.
Over/Under
Though the total has gone Over in each of their first 3 meetings of the season, neither team has been scoring a ton recently. The Twins have scored at least 5 runs just once in their last 7 games and now they face Manoah.
Bet the UNDER 8.5 (-125).
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