The Boston Red Sox continue a 10-game stint within the AL East with Game 1 of an extended four-game weekend series against the Baltimore Orioles this Thursday night at Camden Yards. This division clash is scheduled to get underway at 7:05 p.m. (ET), and it will be available on MLB Extra Innings.

The Red Sox will wrap up a three-game set against Tampa Bay on the road this Wednesday night after splitting the first two games. They are now 40-26 on the year and hold a two-game lead over New York and a 2.5-game lead over the Orioles in the division. Boston is 19-12 on the road this season, and the total has gone “over” in its last six games.

Baltimore will look to sweep the Los Angeles Angels three straight this Wednesday afternoon before playing host to its AL East rivals. It is now 6-3 in its last nine games and 37-28 overall. The Orioles have the best home record in the American League at 20-15, and the total has stayed “under” in seven of their last nine games.

Red Sox at Orioles Betting Storylines

The resurgent Red Sox have turned things around this season behind a pitching staff that has come together to post a team ERA of 3.88 through the first 66 games. It also helps when you have a bruising lineup that is averaging a league-high 5.29 runs a game. There is trouble throughout the entire batting order with players like Mike Napoli (49 RBI and nine home runs), David Ortiz (48 RBI and 13 home runs) and Daniel Nava (42 RBI and eight home runs) leading the way. Overall, Boston has nine different players with at least 20 RBI this season.

Felix Doubront is scheduled to get the start for Boston on Thursday night. The left-hander comes in with a 4-3 record in 10 starts and a 4.84 ERA. He has found his form as of late in allowing a total of 10 earned runs over the course of his last 29 innings pitched. He is 0-2 against Baltimore with an ERA of 3.13.

The Orioles continue to keep chase in a very competitive AL East race despite the fact they are ranked 14th in the AL in pitching with a team ERA of 4.49. This may come to haunt them as the season wears on, but for right now they are doing a great job at closing the gap behind the third-best hitting team in the league with a batting average of.273. Baltimore has also knocked in the third most runs (305) and it is averaging 4.91 runs a game. The big bats in this lineup include Chris Davis, who has already tallied 52 RBI while leading the Majors in home runs with 20. Adams Jones is second on the team in RBI with 43 while belting 13 home runs of his own.

It will be Kevin Gausman’s turn in the rotation for Game 1. The rookie is still searching for his first victory after going 0-3 in his first four starts. The highly-touted right-hander has been tagged for seven earned runs in two of those outings, and he comes in with an overall ERA of 8.84. This will be his first career start against Boston.

Red Sox at Orioles Betting Odds and Trends
Boston has been opened by BetOnline as a -110 road favorite for Thursday night’s series opener with the Orioles listed as +100 home underdogs. The total has been set at 9.5.

The Red Sox are 5-2 in their last seven games against the AL East and 9-4 in their last 13 games against a right-handed starter. The total has gone over in six of their last seven opening games of a new series.

The Orioles are 8-1 in their last nine home games and 4-1 in their last five games against a left-handed starter. The total has gone over in five of their last eight games against the division.

Head-to-head in this matchup, the home team is 5-2 in the last seven meetings, and the total has stayed under in three of the last five games. Baltimore took the early edge in this season’s series by winning two of three on the road in early April. The total stayed under in two of those games.

Red Sox at Orioles Picks and Betting Predictions

Both teams have the ability to light up the scoreboard, so the over on the total line is always in play, but Doubront should be able to give the Red Sox at least six or seven quality innings, while Gausman could be in for another early night. Stick with Boston to come out on top in this one as it slugs its way to the early edge in the series.

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