Tampa Bay Rays vs Toronto Blue Jays Prediction, 5/18/2024 MLB Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Tampa Bay Rays vs Toronto Blue Jays

Date: Saturday, May 18, 2024

Location: Rogers Centre in Toronto, ON

TV: Bally Sports Sun

Odds/Point Spread: Tampa Bay (+150) Toronto (-178)

The Tampa Bay Rays (23-22) are traveling to Rogers Centre on Saturday where they will try to defeat the Toronto Blue Jays (19-23). The moneyline on this matchup has Tampa Bay at +150 while Toronto is opening at -178. The total comes in at 8.5. The men taking the mound will be Zach Eflin and Kevin Gausman.

Tampa Bay has a slugging rate of .366 and have struck out 409 times, while taking a walk on 142 occasions. They have accumulated 170 RBI's in addition to 365 hits so far this year, and their average at the plate sits at .242. The Rays have compiled 63 doubles as a squad and have smacked 38 baseballs out of the park. They have tallied 187 runs scored while having a team on-base percentage of .314. As a unit, the Tampa Bay Rays are earning 4.2 runs/g, which ranks them 19th in baseball.

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They have earned a strikeout to walk ratio of 2.90 and their pitching staff has a team WHIP of 1.28. Rays pitchers have relinquished 60 home runs and also 215 runs in total (26th in baseball). Tampa Bay has surrendered 382 hits (8.5 per 9 innings) in addition to 195 earned runs. The Rays have a team ERA of 4.33 so far this year (21st in baseball), and the staff has struck out 391 hitters. Their pitching staff has walked 135 hitters and their FIP is 4.26 as a team this year.

The Rays have dispatched 146 relievers to the mound this year. The relief pitchers have inherited 50 base runners so far this season with 22.0% of those players crossed home plate. They have earned 14 saves on the season and have blown 10 of 24 chances to save the game. The Rays relief pitchers have accumulated a save rate of 58.3% and stepped onto the hill in 58 save situations. The relief pitchers are sitting with 33 holds for the year (3rd in baseball). Rays bullpen pitchers have come into the game with runners on 35 times in addition to having 68 appearances in high leverage situations.

The Rays have transformed 69.9% of balls in play into outs in their 3,651 innings on the diamond, which has them sitting 17th in the majors. The Tampa Bay Rays have 1,217 putouts on the year, as well as 343 assists and 25 errors. Their fielding percentage sits at .984 which has them sitting 13th in baseball, and they have turned 30 double plays.

Eflin has taken the hill for 890 innings and is sitting with 779 K's so far in his pro baseball career. Eflin (55-57 career mark) has a FIP of 4.06 while he has gone up against 3,728 hitters in the majors. His ERA is 4.26 (421 earned runs allowed) and his career WHIP is 1.231. He has given up 908 hits (9.2 hits per nine innings) and has 188 free passes.

The Toronto Blue Jays have earned a team OBP of .309 and a team batting average of .229 on the season. They have been rung up on 305 occasions (29th in the league) and have totaled 312 base knocks. Toronto has 35 long balls over the course of the season as well as 142 RBIs. The Blue Jays have a SLG% of .359 and they are earning 3.62 runs per outing (28th in the league). They have notched 66 doubles, while walking 146 times and racking up 152 runs.

The Blue Jays have a WHIP of 1.347 in addition to having a FIP of 4.47 as a staff on the year. They have earned a K/BB ratio of 8.40 (338 strikeouts vs 132 bases on balls). They come in at 17th in the league as a staff in total hits conceded with 357. They have relinquished 56 home runs and they relinquish 4.93 runs per 9 innings (26th in baseball). The Toronto pitching staff have given up 199 runs for the year and come in with a team ERA of 4.49 (181 earned runs yielded).

With 41 save situations, the Blue Jays have earned 26 holds in addition to 4 blown saves. Toronto has had relievers step onto the mound in 15 save chances and they have earned 11 saves. Their relief pitchers have taken the field 28 times in high leverage situations and also on 49 occasions with runners on base. Toronto relievers have an inherited score rate of 26.4% out of 72 inherited base runners. They sit at 7th in MLB with a save percentage of 73.3%, and they have dispatched 139 relievers to the hill on the campaign.

In 3,267 innings played, the Blue Jays have earned a defensive efficiency of 69.0% (22nd in MLB). The Toronto Blue Jays have turned 31 double plays and have notched a fielding percentage of .984 (18th in MLB). The Blue Jays have accrued 352 assists, 24 errors and have 1,089 putouts over the course of the season.

So far in his career, Gausman has surrendered 1,560 base knocks while he has accumulated 1,640 strikeouts in 1,573 innings pitched. Gausman (90-94 career win-loss record) is the owner of a 3.87 earned run average while giving up 8.9 hits per nine innings. He has conceded a total of 676 ER's while holding a WHIP of 1.271 and a FIP of 3.6. He has a K/BB ratio of 3.74 and he has gone up against 6,619 opposing batters in his MLB career.

Who will win tonight's MLB game against the spread or moneyline?

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Tampa Bay (+150)

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