Orioles vs Red Sox Odds Lines, and Spread (April 2)
- The Orioles and Red Sox meet on Friday, April 2nd, at Fenway after their Opening Day matchup was postponed due to rain
- Nathan Eovaldi will take the mound for Boston, while southpaw John Means gets the ball for Baltimore
- Get the full odds, preview, and best bet below
The Boston Red Sox and Baltimore Orioles were two organizations that will have to wait another day to begin their season, with the first of a three-game set scheduled for Friday, April 2nd (first pitch 2:10 pm ET) after Thursday’s meeting was postponed due to weather.
Nathan Eovaldi gets the start for Beantown, while lefty John Means takes the hill for Baltimore. These AL East foes both struggled in 2020, sitting towards the bottom of the division. However, they split their season series with five wins each.
Orioles vs Red Sox Odds
| Team | Runline | Moneyline at FanDuel | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baltimore Orioles | +1.5 (-120) | +150 | O 9.5 (-106) |
| Boston Red Sox | -1.5 (+100) | -178 | U 9.5 (-114) |
Odds as of April 1.
Can Means Turn Fortunes Around Against Boston?
Means got lit up in Spring Training, collecting a 7.11 ERA in six starts while giving up 15 earned runs in just 19 innings of work. It was not a good way for the Orioles lefty to roll into the 2021 season and right from the get-go, he’ll be up against a Red Sox lineup that rakes against him.
Means made just one appearance vs. Boston in 2020, lasting three innings while giving up two homers and three runs. Their starting lineup as a group is hitting .342 when Means is on the bump, so you better believe the Red Sox are looking forward to Friday.
Red Sox Career Stats vs. Means
| Player | AB | H | HR | RBI | K | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Xander Bogaerts | 14 | 6 | 2 | 5 | 2 | .429 |
| Rafael Devers | 18 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 3 | .167 |
| Enrique Hernandez | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .333 |
| J.D. Martinez | 14 | 4 | 3 | 6 | 3 | .286 |
| Hunter Renfroe | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .000 |
| Christian Vazquez | 11 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .182 |
| Alex Verdugo | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .1000 |
| Marwin Gonzalez | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bobby Dalbec | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
As for Baltimore as a whole, they’re fully in a rebuild and not expected to make much noise this season. The O’s will have arguably their top bat in Trey Mancini back after his battle with colon cancer, who should serve as a mentor to a lot of the young guys on this roster.
Free-agent signings Maikel Franco and Freddy Galvis will occupy the left side of the infield and also add an offensive spark to the lineup. Franco, who had three 20-plus home run seasons from 2015-17 with the Philadelphia Phillies, will be looked upon to provide some pop at the dish for the Orioles.
Eovaldi Looking to Continue Success Against O’s
Eovaldi steps in as the Opening Day starter for ace Eduardo Rodriguez, who has landed on the IL with a dead arm. For Alex Cora though, this is the guy you’d want on the mound with Baltimore in town. He held the O’s to just one run across six innings in last year’s season opener, surrendering five hits.
Eovaldi, who can dial it up to triple digits, holds a career 6-1 record against the Orioles with a 4.15 ERA. Their lineup has hit him around a bit at times though, with a career .282 average against the veteran righty.
Eovaldi will be looking to replicate a solid 2020 campaign, posting a 3.72 ERA in nine starts while giving up just seven free passes in 48.1 innings. That was a far cry from ’19 where he walked 4.7 hitters per nine.
Orioles Career Stats vs. Eovaldi
| Player | AB | H | HR | RBI | K | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maikel Franco | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 |
| Freddy Galvis | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .600 |
| Austin Hays | 8 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .500 |
| Trey Mancini | 6 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | .333 |
| Ryan Mountcastle | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .667 |
| Anthony Santander | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .286 |
| Cedric Mullins | 11 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 5 | .273 |
| Pat Valaika | 5 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .600 |
Boston may have had their struggles on the mound last season with a very shaky staff, but this ballclub is packed with loud bats. Alex Verdugo was a bright spot in ’20, hitting .308 with six bombs.
Xander Bogaerts also batted over .300 and went deep 11 times, proving once again to be one of the most consistent players in this lineup. A bounce-back campaign from J. D. Martinez will be needed though after posting a .213 average with only seven homers.
Work from home. pic.twitter.com/QOYXH2E9ea
— Red Sox (@RedSox) March 31, 2021
The offense will hit, there’s no doubt about that. But the Red Sox rotation must be better and after a couple of acquisitions like Nick Pivetta and Garrett Richards, there’s definitely a belief that Boston can get back to the postseason in 2021.
Best Bet
Eovaldi went 3-0 with a 0.95 ERA in three starts against Baltimore last season. The Red Sox hitters clearly love facing Means and I think they’re going to hit him around again.
Eovaldi will give up a couple of runs on Friday but he’ll come out unscathed, which is why you should take Boston as the Moneyline favorite and bet on the under.
Pick: Red Sox -178, Under 9.5 Runs (-114)
Quinn Allen is a sports journalist, with a background and education in broadcast journalism (BCIT '17). He is a full-time associate editor at ClutchPoints by day, where he writes about soccer, baseball, basketball, football, and more. At night, Quinn is a frequent contributor at SBD.
