The Baltimore Orioles will look to make up some ground in the AL East title race this week when they square off against the first-place Boston Red Sox in a crucial three-game series at Fenway Park. Tuesday night’s series opener is slated to get underway at 7:10 p.m. (ET), and it will be available on MLB Extra Innings.

After losing two of three games to Tampa Bay last week at home, the Orioles won a three-game weekend series against Oakland with a 10-3 victory on Sunday as -110 home favorites. They will now head on the road for the next nine games where they are 32-30 on the year.

Boston handed the red-hot Los Angeles Dodgers their first series loss in over two months with an 8-1 win this past Sunday as a +114 road underdog. That game wrapped up a six-game road trip in which the Red Sox went 4-2. They return to Fenway for the next nine games with a 40-23 record at home this year.

Orioles at Red Sox Betting Storylines

It is crunch time for Baltimore as far as making it into the playoffs. It trails Boston by 5.5 games for the division title, and it is two games back in the wild-card race. The team has been unable to build any real momentum as the month of August winds down with a 5-5 record in its last 10 games. The Orioles remain one of the best hitting teams in the American League with a team batting average of .265, and they are the third highest-scoring team in the AL with an average of 4.8 runs a game.

Pitching remains somewhat of an issue for Baltimore with a staff ERA of 4.25 that is ranked 10th in the league. It will go with Wei-Yin Chen as its starter for Tuesday night. The left-hander is 7-6 on the year with a 3.19 ERA. His last time out he held Tampa Bay to just two runs in seven innings to get the win. Lifetime against Boston he is 2-1 with an ERA of 2.96.

The Red Sox remain in a tough battle with Tampa Bay for the lead in the AL East. Sunday’s win coupled with a Rays’ loss to the Yankees opened up a one-game lead with an overall record of 77-55. They have been one of the top-scoring teams in the AL as well with an average of five runs a game, which is second only to Detroit. The biggest bat in the lineup belongs to David Ortiz, who leads the team with 78 RBI and 24 home runs.

Boston’s overall pitching has remained solid as well down the stretch. It comes into this series with a team ERA of 3.79. Felix Doubront is expected to be on the mound in this series opener for the Red Sox as the starter. He is coming off a stellar performance against San Francisco in which he allowed just one run on five hits in eight innings of work. The left-hander is 9-6 on the year with a 3.79 ERA. He is 0-2 against Baltimore with an ERA of 3.58.

Orioles at Red Sox MLB Betting Odds and Trends

BetOnline has opened the Orioles as +119 road underdogs for Tuesday night’s series opener with Boston listed as a -129 home favorite. The total for this contest has been set at 9.

The Orioles are 18-21 this season against left-handed pitchers and 1-4 in their last five games on the road. The total has gone “over” in seven of their last 10 games.

The Red Sox are 2-5 in their last seven games against the AL East but 6-3 in their last nine games at home. The total has gone over in five of their last eight home games.

Head-to-head in this division matchup, Baltimore has a slight 6-4 edge in the season series overall, and it is 2-1 in three road games against its rivals. The total has stayed “under” in seven of those 10 games.

Baseball Picks: Orioles at Red Sox Predictions

Both teams should get some solid pitching from its starters in this matchup that should carry late into the game. While the slight edge on the side would probably go to Boston playing at home, the best play in this contest is the under on the total line staying true to the current series trend.

Take advantage and get your $60 worth of member’s baseball picks absolutely free – no obligation, no sales people – you don’t even have to enter credit card information. Get free baseball picks here now.

Read more articles by Dave Schwab