Orioles vs Red Sox Odds
| Orioles Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Moneyline | Total | Run Line |
-142 | 8.5 -102o / -120u | -1.5 +118 |
| Red Sox Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Moneyline | Total | Run Line |
+120 | 8.5 -102o / -120u | +1.5 -142 |
The Baltimore Orioles head to the difficult environment of Fenway Park to face the Boston Red Sox on Tuesday.
The Orioles haven't played a tough schedule so far, facing the Pirates, Angels and Royals — three teams that probably won't make the playoffs.
The Red Sox opened the season scorching hot at 7-3 despite dealing with some difficult circumstances in regard to injuries and their stars not hitting well at the plate.
What will this game bring? Let's make an Orioles vs. Red Sox pick and prediction while we look at the MLB odds for Tuesday, April 9.
Baltimore Orioles
Once the Orioles sold the team, it finally prompted some money-spending moves while moving on from their penny-pinching ways.
The main move was adding Brewers starter and former NL Cy Young winner Corbin Burnes, who's done nothing but dominate in 11.2 innings in the orange and black. Through two starts, Burnes has a 2.30 ERA and 1.91 FIP with a 31% strikeout rate. He cost the Orioles a hefty price, but it's been worth it thus far.
Good luck getting the ball in the air against Burnes with the aforementioned 31% strikeout rate paired with a 48% ground-ball rate. Unless Burnes walks batters — and he hasn't yet this year — you'll need some ground balls to find holes.
Brandon Hyde will hope Burnes provides length since the bullpen looks shaky. With Felix Bautista done for the year, both Yennier Cano and Craig Kimbrel will work the ninth inning.
The Kimbrel experience has side effects of heart palpitations, and Cano blew a save against the Pirates on Saturday.
The other middle-relief options look painfully mediocre so far, as Cionel Perez and Jonathan Heasley pitch important innings late in games.
At the plate, six Orioles regulars boast wRC+ numbers over 100, led by a staggering 225 from Colton Cowser and 199 from Ryan O'Hearn. I'm sure the Orioles won't complain about two middle-of-the-order bats producing more than the stars, but they'll need the stars to be stars eventually.
Adley Rutschman is hitting .303 with a strong .375 OBP and a below-average .749 OPS. Why is Rutschman's OPS so low compared to to his first two years? He has just two extra-base hits and zero home runs in nine games.
Considering he racked up 54 extra-base hits a season ago, you'd guess it's just a small sample size outlier instead of a season-long struggle.
Boston Red Sox
The Red Sox have lost some of their luster over the past two seasons, finishing last in the AL East twice in a row. That sounds nearly impossible for a team that's won more World Series titles than anyone since 2004.
It's a transition period for the Sox, and one of the main issues is Trevor Story's albatross contract. Instead of extending Xander Bogaerts, Boston opted to pay Story as a contingency plan if Bogaerts were to move on in free agency, and we know how that story ended with Bogaerts now playing in San Diego.
Story could be done for the season after suffering a serious shoulder injury against the Angels.
In his stead, David Hamilton is occupying the shortstop spot and went bridge in his first start of the season. We'll see how Hamilton fares long-term, but he should be a solid piece with his elite speed and defense.
Tyler O'Neill is arguably the hottest hitter in baseball over the first two weeks, posting an insane 281 wRC+ with five home runs in his first nine games — only four shy of his season total from last year. O'Neill is the main reason for the Red Sox's red-hot start to the year, and fans had virtually no expectations for him.
Triston Casas and Rafael Devers haven't started hitting yet, which makes Boston's start seem more real than fluky. Casas is sporting a wRC+ under 100, while Devers is hitting below .230 in the young season.
On the hill is Brayan Bello, who Red Sox fans quickly handed the "Young Pedro" nickname to due to his smaller stature and ability to throw heat. So far, Bello has shown he's far from being Pedro Martinez, posting a 5.80 ERA in two starts.
I have an even larger concern in this matchup.
For some reason, Bello pitched to a ghastly 6.04 ERA in 10 starts during day games last season. Sure, 10 games isn't the largest sample, but why did Bello turn into a dreadful pitcher when games started earlier? It's a noteworthy trend to keep an eye on.
Orioles vs Red Sox
Betting Pick & Prediction
It's Burnes Day, which means it's time to back the Orioles with a little juice on the moneyline. I don't love laying juice on the road, but I have some major concerns about Bello's inability to perform well during day games.
We'll see if Bello's first day game of 2024 provides different results, but I'm skeptical.
Pick: Orioles ML -135
