Rays vs Blue Jays Odds & Picks (July 2)

• The Toronto Blue Jays are -144 home favorites over the Tampa Bay Rays in the opener of a twin bill between these American League East rivals on Saturday, July 2
• Tampa Bay is 1-4 straight up in the past five visits to Toronto
• All of the Rays vs Blue Jays odds, picks, predictions and best bets are analyzed in the following story

As the Tampa Bay Rays (40-36, 15-19 away) are finding out, the Toronto Blue Jays (44-33, 25-15 home) appear to have rediscovered their mojo. Toronto has won two straight in a five-game weekend series against the Rays.

Overall, the Jays are 4-1 in their past five games. They’d endured a 3-7 skid prior to that, including a 2-5 slate in matchups with American League East rivals.

It’s the Jays that will wear the -144 favorite’s tag into the third game of this set, the opener of a doubleheader. Toronto is 23-13 straight up as the home chalk this season.

First pitch at Rogers Centre is set for 12:07pm ET on Saturday, July 2. Sunny skies with cloudy periods are in the forecast, with 14 mph wind and a temperature of 81 degrees.

Rays vs Blue Jays Odds

Odds as of July 1 at FanDuel Sportsbook. See available FanDuel Sportsbook promo codes. 

At odds of -144, the Blue Jays are offering an implied probability of victory of 59.02% in the MLB betting line. A successful $10 wager on Toronto would deliver a payout of $16.90.

The MLB betting trends show that in the AL Division odds, Toronto is +285 to win the AL East. Tampa Bay is +650 to win the NL Central. The MLB pennant odds show the Blue Jays at +550 and the Rays at +1400 to win the AL flag. Toronto is at +1200  and Tampa Bay is +3000 to win it all in the World Series odds.

Tampa Bay vs Toronto Probable Pitchers

Tampa Bay left-hander Shane McClanahan rates among the most dominant AL pitchers this season. He’s leading the league in ERA (1.77), strikeouts (123), WHIP (0.83), hits per nine innings (5.9) and strikeouts/walks ratio (7.59). McClanahan has issued just 16 free passes over 91.1 innings pitched. He’s the +353 favorite in the AL Cy Young odds.

In terms of analytics, McClanahan is among the top 3% in strikeout percentage (35.7), the top 4% in wOBA (.231), the top 5% in xwOBA (.255) and xERA (2.34), the top 7% in xBA (1.99) and the top 8% in bases on balls percentage (4.6). On the other hand, McClanahan is situated among the bottom 3% in max EV (116.2).

Shane McClanahan, 10th K…Bend the Knee. pic.twitter.com/vdgbQg1Ie6

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) June 26, 2022

McClanahan has lost just once since May 1, going 7-1. He’s also worked at least five innings in 13 successive trips to the bump. McClanahan has allowed more than two earned runs in only two of 15 starts.

In four road starts, McClanahan is 1-1 with a 1.48 ERA. However, the southpaw is 0-1 with a 3.14 ERA in three starts against the Blue Jays. This will be his first appearance at Rogers Centre.

McClanahan vs Gausman

Jays right-hander Kevin Gausman hasn’t been the same pitcher in Toronto as the guy who was a National League All-Star last season in San Francisco. However, in his last start he pitched seven scoreless innings and got the win in a 7-2 decision over Boston. Gausman halted a three-game losing skid with that triumph.

Charlie Montoyo confirms that Kevin Gausman will start the opener of tomorrow’s doubleheader. Thomas Hatch gets the nightcap in his 2022 #Bluejays debut.

— Mike Wilner (@Wilnerness) July 1, 2022

Gausman does lead the AL with a 1.70 FIP. He’s also among the top 6% of big-league hurlers in bases on balls percentage (4.2). His max EV of 116.6 rates in the bottom 3% of the league, though.

Gausman is 3-3 with a 3.75 ERA in eight home starts. He’s faced the Rays 18 times and is 7-7 with a 3.99 ERA. At the Rogers Center, Gausman is 6-6 with a 3.88 ERA in 20 appearances.

Batting Average vs Starting Pitchers

Toronto’s George Springer is 2-for-3 (.667) against McClanahan with a homer and two RBI. Matt Chapman is 2-for-4 (.500) with a solo homer. Teoscar Hernandez is 2-for-5 (.400). Vladimir Guerrero Jr is 2-for-6 (.333).

George Springer crushes a home run for the lead! pic.twitter.com/k1PUOVrRWr

— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) June 30, 2022

Tampa Bay’s Taylor Walls is 1-for-3 (.333) when facing Gausman. Kevin Kiermaier is just 6-for-25 (.240) but he’s gone deep twice and driven in three runs.

Rays vs Blue Jays Prediction

The Rays are 0-4 since McClanahan beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-2 on June 26. He’s 2-0 this season when pitching after a Tampa Bay loss.

Gausman has proven to be a mediocre pitcher at home and against the Rays. He hasn’t won two in a row since late May

Pick: Tampa Bay Rys ML (+122)