Rays vs. Angels Free MLB Picks and Preview (Archive)
The Los Angeles Angels and Tampa Bay Rays will start a new MLB series on Monday. Both teams are well above .500 and are looking to continue their hot momentum into this series. Which team has the advantage on Monday?
The Angels are finally in contention. I know it’s early, but you’ve got to get excited about the Angels’ hot start with Mike Trout healthy. Everyone wants to see Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout in the playoffs. Keep reading for a full breakdown of the MLB odds and a winning betting MLB pick!
Tampa Bay Rays vs. Los Angeles Angels
Monday, May 09, 2022 – 09:38 PM EDT at Angel Stadium
Tampa Bay Rays Lineup Analysis
The Tampa Bay Rays are also in contention, like every year. The Rays are 18-11 and continue to amaze the baseball world with production from no-name type players. It’s astonishing. Tonight, the Rays will pitch Jeffery Springs, a no-name pitcher that has a 1-0 record and a .69 ERA. See what I mean?
Springs has a 3.61 xFIP with 25% strikeouts and 6.8% walks on the season. He’s earning 51.7% of ground balls and giving up just 17.2% of line drives. The lefty will go up against an Angels projected lineup that has a .149 ISO and wOBA of .327.
However, it’s only Taylor Ward, Mike Trout, and Anthony Rendon who are doing most of the offense against lefties. The rest of the lineup has been very unproductive, including Ohtani.
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Los Angeles Angels Lineup Breakdown
On the other hand, Noah Syndergaard will get the call. So far this season, he has a 2.63 ERA with a 2-1 record. However, his xFIP is inching higher at 4.95 and he’s only struck out 14.6% of the batters this season.
Syndergaard is still earning 50.7% ground balls and getting 16% of line drives, so he’s had success outside of his strikeouts. The Rays lineup has a .151 ISO and wOBA of .299 against righties this season with 27.2% strikeouts. This could be the MLB game where Syndergaard finally finds his put-away stuff again.
The Rays are really only getting power from Wander Franco and Ji-Man Choi against righties this season. Therefore, we’ve got an even match between the two teams.
What's Rays vs. Angels Betting Prediction?
The Rays have been a bit lucky this year against righties with a BABIP of .370. That means that 37% of the time, a ball in play has become a hit. The Rays do hit the ball hard and hit 23.7% line drives to show for it, but ultimately, that number isn’t going to stay that high as the season progresses.
Syndergaard hasn’t been able to earn a whole lot of strikeouts this season but against the Rays, those strikeouts would be essential. If you can limit the Rays from putting the ball in play, all things will work out.
It’s hard to score against the Rays bullpen but the Angels simply have the better lineup with the more notable pitcher. I’ll take them on the moneyline at -135. It’s a good price for a 19-win team at home.
MLB Pick: Los Angeles Angels ML (-135) with BetOnline (visit our BetOnline Review)
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