Joe Kelly (2-4, 5.40 ERA) and Drew Hutchison (5-1, 4.91 ERA) take the hill in the first of a three-game series between the Boston Red Sox (27-34) and the Toronto Blue Jays (31-30) at Fenway Park. The Blue Jays come into this series riding an eight-game winning streak. Action begins at 7:10 p.m. ET on Friday, Jun. 12 and can be seen on RSN and NESN.
Kelly is 0-1 with a 6.62 ERA in his appearances against the Blue Jays, and goes up against a quality Toronto offense which is batting .266 this season. Dustin Pedroia (.310, 29 Rs, 8 HRs, 23 RBIs, 1 SB) went 1 for 5 yesterday with one run. Against the Red Sox, Hutchison is 3-1 with a 5.34 ERA, 1.75 WHIP, and 23 strikeouts. Josh Donaldson (.317, 50 Rs, 17 HRs, 44 RBIs, 3 SBs) has been successful at the plate for the Blue Jays, going 2 for 4 Wednesday with one run, one home run, and one RBI.
Boston is a -119 favorite against Toronto and the Over/Under (O/U) for this game is sitting at nine runs. The Red Sox have an overall money line of -1,234 and a record as the favorite of 18-22. Boston has had a discouraging season against division opponents, earning records of 6-10 and 10-17 as the favorite and SU respectively. Boston’s batters do not strike out very often, with only 6.4 per game. Boston’s pitching staff has been doing better against opposing offenses during the last 10 games, only allowing an average of 3.1 runs per game, well under their season average of 4.5.
In the other locker room, Toronto is coming in with an overall money line of -81 and a disappointing record of 11-18 as the underdog. They are 6-10 as the underdog against teams in their division, and 14-14 SU. Offensively, they average 5.3 runs per game, which is tops in the AL. The Blue Jays are tough outs for opponents, ranking third in the AL with 8.9 hits per game. Toronto is excellent at drawing walks with 3.2 per game, ranking second in the AL. The Blue Jays allow 4.4 runs per game, but have improved upon those numbers in the past 10 games, allowing 2.9 runs per game during that span.
The Red Sox have a 19-23 record against right-handed starting pitchers on the year, which is what they’ll be facing when Hutchison takes the mound. Kelly (RHP) will be on the hill against the Blue Jays, who have a 22-26 record against right-handed starting pitchers.
Predictions: SU Winner – TOR, O/U – Over
Notes
When leading after 7 innings, Toronto is 17-12, while Boston is 12-14.
The Red Sox are coming into this game after allowing two walks during their last outing. The Blue Jays have an 11-10 record when opponents give up that many walks or fewer.
The Blue Jays are coming into the game with eight consecutive wins, while the Red Sox currently have a losing streak of three.
When they outhit their opponents, the Blue Jays are 27-5. The Red Sox have a 23-4 record when outhitting opponents.
Toronto tops the league in runs with 325 this season. Boston ranks near the bottom at 25th with 228.
Ranking sixth, Boston is in the top 10 of the league in walks, notching 195 this season. Toronto ranks in the top five at third with 197.
The Red Sox are 20-17 in games where they hit one or more home runs. The Blue Jays are 27-15 when they hit at least one homer.
