Media by Associated Press – Toronto Blue Jays’ Vladimir Guerrero Jr. during a baseball game against the Seattle Mariners, Sunday, July 10, 2022, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
The post-All-Star break second half begins in the AL East, with the fourth-place Boston Red Sox (48-45) hosting the third-place Toronto Blue Jays (50-43).
The teams will face each other in a three-game weekend series as they battle for wild card positioning and to catch second-place Tampa Bay. Friday’s series opener is set for 7:05 p.m. ET at Fenway Park in Boston, airing locally in both markets.
The Red Sox will start RHP Nathan Eovaldi (4-2, 3.34) on the mound against Blue Jays RHP Kevin Gausman (6-7, 2.87). So far this season, the Blue Jays lead the season series 7-3 with a 2-1 mark at Fenway. Including Friday’s series opener, these teams will meet nine times to finish the regular season.
Blue Jays Under New Management
Toronto fired manager Charlie Montoyo earlier this month and handed the reins to bench coach John Schneider, a veteran minor league manager. The team has responded with a 4-1 record under Schneider heading into the All-Star break. The Blue Jays are 20-24 on the road this season, 41-31 against RHP, and 16-18 against the AL East.
All-Star catcher Alejandro Kirk leads Toronto on the season with a .315 average, while Lourdes Gurriel Jr. is batting .306. All-Star Vladimir Guerrero Jr. leads the team with 20 home runs and 57 RBI, while Bo Bichette has 14 homers and 50 RBI.
George Springer (17), Matt Chapman (15), Teoscar Hernandez (12), and Kirk (11) are also in double digits in home runs. All-Star infielder Santiago Espinal has been a bright spot with 21 doubles and a .271 average.
Gausman’s final start before the break was on July 14 against the Royals, as he allowed two runs on seven hits in a loss. He’s gone less than four innings in three of his last seven starts and is 1-4 in that stretch with a 3.55 ERA. Gausman has faced Boston three times this season with one run allowed over 21 innings and a pair of wins.
Red Sox Battling Inconsistency
The Red Sox went into the break with a 3-7 stretch, all against the Yankees and Rays. They are 23-20 at home so far this season and 32-38 against RHP. Boston has struggled mightily in the division with a 12-26 record against their four AL East rivals.
All-Stars Xander Bogaerts and Rafael Devers are having outstanding seasons again. Bogaerts is batting .316 with seven homers, 24 doubles, and 37 RBI, while Devers is hitting .325 with 22 homers, 55 RBI, and 28 doubles. J.D. Martinez was also an All-Star, batting .302 with nine homers, 30 doubles, and 38 RBI.
Trevor Story is on the IL with 15 homers and 58 RBI. The rest of the offense has struggled power-wise, leaving the Red Sox ninth in the AL in home runs and sixth in slugging. They are, however, second in the league in runs scored but rank 12th in ERA.
Eovaldi came off the IL to face the Yankees on July 15, and he allowed three runs on six hits over 4⅓ innings in a no-decision. He had been injured in a June 8 game at the Angels with a back inflammation. Before landing on the IL, he won three straight outings and went at least five innings in four straight.
He faced Toronto twice in April with a pair of no-decisions and three runs allowed over 11 ⅔ innings. Eovaldi is 1-2 at Fenway this season with a 4.67 ERA, and he has allowed nine home runs in just 27 innings.
Betting Analysis
Toronto Blue Jays -1.5 (+150) Moneyline -105
Boston Red Sox +1.5 (-175) Moneyline +110
Total Runs 8.5. Over -115. Under -105
The pitching for both of these teams has struggled lately as both teams rank in the bottom five in the American League in ERA and WHIP. The Jays have scored at least six runs in three of their last four wins, while Boston allowed 27 runs total in the two losses before the break. Look for the runs to be plentiful in Friday’s series opener.
Betting Pick: Over 8.5 runs (-115)
Keep up with your latest MLB news coverage and betting pick previews at NJ Sportsbook.