José Berríos will get the start for the Blue Jays (80-67, 38-34 home) as they host the Red Sox (74-73, 36-35 away) at Rogers Centre. The Red Sox will give the starting nod to Brayan Bello. Check out my prediction for game one of this AL East matchup between the Boston Red Sox and Toronto Blue Jays.

BOSTON RED SOX VS TORONTO BLUE JAYS BETTING PICK

The Pick: Boston Red Sox +114

This game will be played at Rogers Centre at 7:07 ET on Friday, September 15th.

WHY BET THE BOSTON RED SOX:

  • Over their last five games on the road, Boston has a straight-up record of 3-2.
  • As the favorite on the road, the Red Sox’s win streak currently stands at two games.
  • Brayan Bello has done a good job at avoiding the long-ball of late, having not given up a home-run in each of his past two starts.

BOSTON RED SOX HAVE BEEN GOOD AGAINST THE AL EAST

The Red Sox will be playing their 147th game of the season today and are 4th in the AL East on a record of 74-73. So far, Boston has won 50.0% of their games at home compared to 50.7% on the road. Against divisional opponents, the Red Sox are 22-21 and have played a total of 46 series, going 22-20-4.

The Red Sox will turn to starter Brayan Bello as they look to build on his 12-8 record. Through 25 appearances, the right-hander has posted an ERA of 3.68 and a K/9 figure of 7.42. His FIP stands at 4.26, while his OBP is .308.

Brayan Bello earned a win in his last outing against the Orioles, as the Red Sox came out on top 7-3. The right-hander allowed three runs and seven hits over six innings of work.

Having gone deep 11 times in their last ten games, the Red Sox are 10th in that span. At 5 runs per game, Boston is 8th in the league. This figure has come on a team batting average of .263 while hitting a total of 174 home runs (13th).

Rafael Devers has been a major offensive contributor for the Red Sox this season, boasting a .276 batting average and .514 slugging percentage. In the team’s last ten games, Devers has been on fire at the plate, leading Boston in hits with a .343 batting average.

WILL THE TORONTO BLUE JAYS TAKE CARE OF BUSINESS AT HOME?

For the season, the Blue Jays are 80-67 overall, including going 42-33 on the road and 38-34 at home. When looking at their overall series record, Toronto is above .500 at 27-16-2. In the AL East, the Blue Jays are currently 3rd.

José Berríos takes the mound for the Blue Jays with a 10-10 record this season. He has made 29 appearances, boasting an ERA of 3.63 and a K/9 of 8.42. His FIP stands at 4.15 and his OBP is .295.

José Berríos earned a quality start and the win in his most recent outing, as the Blue Jays defeated the Royals 5-2. The right-hander allowed two runs and five hits over seven innings of work.

The Blue Jays’ offense comes into today’s game with a collective batting average of .258 and are averaging 4.6 runs per game for the season. Looking at their ten most recent games, Toronto has gone deep seven times, which is ranked 14th in that time. To date, the team’s OPS is .748 to go along with an on base percentage of .331.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has been a major contributor to the Blue Jays’ offensive success in 2023, leading the team in home runs with 22 and RBIs with 86. His slugging percentage for the season is an impressive .432.