David Price (9-8, 4.34 ERA) and Patrick Corbin (4-11, 5.37 ERA) start in the first of a three-game series between the Boston Red Sox (61-52) and the Arizona Diamondbacks (48-66) at Fenway Park. Action begins at 7:10 p.m. ET on Friday, Aug. 12 and can be seen on FSAZ and NESN.
Price pitched 5.0 innings in his most recent start, surrendering six runs (three unearned), striking out three and walking five in an 8-5 defeat to the Dodgers. Mookie Betts (.312, 87 Rs, 23 HRs, 75 RBIs, 18 SBs) had another good game yesterday, going 2 for 4 with one RBI. Corbin went 5.0 innings, surrendering four runs, striking out five and walking five in a 15-6 defeat to the Brewers in his last outing. Paul Goldschmidt (.299, 67 Rs, 18 HRs, 74 RBIs, 16 SBs) has been successful at the plate, going 2 for 3 yesterday with one run and two stolen bases.
This one isn’t expected to be close when Boston, a substantial -220 favorite, takes on Arizona. The Over/Under (O/U) is sitting at nine runs for this matchup. The Red Sox have an overall money line of -630 and a record as the favorite of 44-36. In interleague play, they have had a solid season, earning 8-3 and 9-5 records as the favorite and SU, respectively. The Red Sox have no trouble scoring as they lead the AL in offense with 5.4 runs per game. The Red Sox lead the MLB in batting average with a phenomenal team average of .283. Boston is one of the best in the AL in terms of walks, earning an average of 3.4 per game. Boston’s pitchers put it all together when National League teams are on the field. Its average runs allowed per game drops to 3.6 against NL teams, compared to its 4.7 season average.
In the other locker room, Arizona is coming in with an overall money line of -1,613 and a disappointing record of 26-42 as the underdog. Arizona has put in a lackluster performance against interleague opponents, coming in with a subpar record SU ({betdsi.at.al.su_record}) and as the underdog (2-7). The Diamondbacks are tough outs for opponents, ranking third in the NL with 9.2 hits per road game. The Diamondbacks are an excellent base stealing team with 85 stolen bases, ranking fourth in the MLB. The Diamondbacks allow 5.4 runs per game, but have damaged those numbers in the past 10 games, allowing 7.1 runs per game during that span.
The Red Sox have a 13-13 record against left-handed starting pitchers on the year, which is what they’ll be facing when Corbin takes the mound. Price (LHP) will be on the hill against the Diamondbacks, who have a 15-15 record against left-handed starting pitchers.
Predictions: SU Winner – BOS, O/U – Over
Notes
When leading after seven innings, Boston is 30-24, while Arizona is 22-34.
The Diamondbacks are coming into this game after allowing one walk during their last outing. The Red Sox have a 10-10 record when opponents give up one walk or less.
When they are outhit, the Diamondbacks are 8-48. The Red Sox have a 6-32 record when opponents outhit them.
Arizona ranks in the bottom half of the league at 18th when it comes to home runs, hitting 130 this season. Boston ranks in the top half with 139.
Boston ranks at the top of the league when it comes to hits with 9.95 per game this season. Arizona ranks in the top five at third with 9.13.
Boston ranks at the top of the league for its on-base plus slugging percentage of .816. Arizona ranks in the top half at 13th with an OPS of .751.
The Diamondbacks are 23-55 in games where they allow one or more home runs. The Red Sox are 35-43 when they allow at least one homer.
