MLB Betting: Red Sox Visit San Francisco
A lot of attention will be on the Dodgers, Yankees series just down the West Coast in LA this weekend. But the Red Sox, Giants set in San Fran holds the most interleague intrigue.
It’ll be a contrast of styles when the Boston Red Sox and San Francisco Giants hook up for a three-game series this weekend at AT&T Park.
The Red Sox are the best offensive team in baseball, ranking in the top three in runs per game, team OPS, home runs, and team batting average.
Of course, this wasn’t the plan for Boston general manager Theo Epstein heading into the season. The BoSox re-tooled around pitching and defense in the offseason, bringing in Mike Cameron, Adrian Beltre, and Marco Scutaro to back up a solid staff.
So much for that idea. Boston’s defense has been fine to okay – even if Cameron has missed much of the season with injury – but the pitching staff is struggling to stay in the middle of the pack.
For its part, San Francisco is exactly where it wants to be – led by its bevy of good arms. The Giants rank third in quality starts (45), third in team ERA (3.38), and fourth in strikeouts (552), while the defense has committed the fourth fewest errors (29).
San Francisco has improved marginally at the dish, but that’s all it needed to do after nearly making the playoffs with one of the worst offenses in baseball last season.
The Giants are only 21st in runs per game (4.28), but that’s good enough to put the team 2.5 games back of National League West-leading San Diego heading into Friday’s schedule.
San Francisco has been especially profitable this season at spacious AT&T Park, where it’s 24-12 SU (+7.48 units). That makes the Giants the fifth best home wager against the betting odds in all of baseball.
You don’t have to look too far down the stat sheet to see why San Francisco is a much better club at their waterfront ballpark: Pitching. The Giants’ staff has posted a 2.57 ERA at home this season, with the bullpen putting up a sparkling 1.96 ERA at AT&T Park.
San Francisco’s most decorated pitcher, two-time defending NL Cy Young award winner Tim Lincecum, has actually been better on the road than at home this season.
That doesn’t mean you should fade him in his matchup with Boston lefthander Jon Lester in the series finale on Sunday afternoon (4:05 p.m. ET).
Some say Lincecum isn’t the pitcher he’s been the last two seasons, but the numbers say otherwise. While he’s had a couple of bad outings, Lincecum remains one of the best pitchers in the NL. Lincecum comes into his start on Sunday with an 8-2 record and a 2.86 ERA. The Giants are 11-4 against the money line in his 15 starts this season. If that’s a down year, Lincecum is headed to the Hall of Fame.
Lester (8-3, 3.03 ERA) has also been impressive this season, but he runs into an average San Francisco offense that’s been anything but against lefthanded pitching at AT&T Park. The Giants are hitting .312 against southpaws at home this season.
Saturday’s second game of the three-game set (7:10 p.m. ET, FOX) is a better spot to wager Boston, as Clay Buchholz (10-4, 2.47 ERA) takes the ball opposite San Francisco’s Joe Martinez (0-1, 4.91 ERA).
Buchholz is likely headed to the All-Star Game after tossing 6 2-3 scoreless innings in Beantown’s 2-0 win as -155 chalk over the Dodgers on Sunday. The righthander is 7-1 with a 1.62 ERA in his last eight starts, during which the Red Sox are 6-2 against the money line.
Tim Wakefield gets the call for Boston in Friday night’s series opener (10:15 p.m. ET), while San Francisco sends Jonathan Sanchez (5-5, 2.90 ERA) to the hill.
The Giants have cashed five of Sanchez’ last seven starts, as they’ve gone 6-1 'over.' That fits into a larger betting trend with San Francisco, which is 8-1 in its last nine interleague home games. The Giants are 12-5-1 'over' in their last 18 contests.
Oddsmakers opened San Francisco as -125 money line favorites for Friday night’s game with the total set at 8½ runs. Boston was on the board as +105 underdogs.
Bettors are advised to check the injury report before wagering on the series. Victor Martinez (head), and J.D. Drew (strained right hamstring) are dealing with injuries this week, while Jacoby Ellsbury (left chest contusion) and Jeremy Hermida (bruised ribs) remain on the 15-day disabled list.
A lot of attention will be on the Dodgers, Yankees series just down the West Coast in LA this weekend. But the Red Sox, Giants set in San Fran holds the most interleague intrigue.
It’ll be a contrast of styles when the Boston Red Sox and San Francisco Giants hook up for a three-game series this weekend at AT&T Park.
The Red Sox are the best offensive team in baseball, ranking in the top three in runs per game, team OPS, home runs, and team batting average.
Of course, this wasn’t the plan for Boston general manager Theo Epstein heading into the season. The BoSox re-tooled around pitching and defense in the offseason, bringing in Mike Cameron, Adrian Beltre, and Marco Scutaro to back up a solid staff.
So much for that idea. Boston’s defense has been fine to okay – even if Cameron has missed much of the season with injury – but the pitching staff is struggling to stay in the middle of the pack.
For its part, San Francisco is exactly where it wants to be – led by its bevy of good arms. The Giants rank third in quality starts (45), third in team ERA (3.38), and fourth in strikeouts (552), while the defense has committed the fourth fewest errors (29).
San Francisco has improved marginally at the dish, but that’s all it needed to do after nearly making the playoffs with one of the worst offenses in baseball last season.
The Giants are only 21st in runs per game (4.28), but that’s good enough to put the team 2.5 games back of National League West-leading San Diego heading into Friday’s schedule.
San Francisco has been especially profitable this season at spacious AT&T Park, where it’s 24-12 SU (+7.48 units). That makes the Giants the fifth best home wager against the betting odds in all of baseball.
You don’t have to look too far down the stat sheet to see why San Francisco is a much better club at their waterfront ballpark: Pitching. The Giants’ staff has posted a 2.57 ERA at home this season, with the bullpen putting up a sparkling 1.96 ERA at AT&T Park.
San Francisco’s most decorated pitcher, two-time defending NL Cy Young award winner Tim Lincecum, has actually been better on the road than at home this season.
That doesn’t mean you should fade him in his matchup with Boston lefthander Jon Lester in the series finale on Sunday afternoon (4:05 p.m. ET).
Some say Lincecum isn’t the pitcher he’s been the last two seasons, but the numbers say otherwise. While he’s had a couple of bad outings, Lincecum remains one of the best pitchers in the NL. Lincecum comes into his start on Sunday with an 8-2 record and a 2.86 ERA. The Giants are 11-4 against the money line in his 15 starts this season. If that’s a down year, Lincecum is headed to the Hall of Fame.
Lester (8-3, 3.03 ERA) has also been impressive this season, but he runs into an average San Francisco offense that’s been anything but against lefthanded pitching at AT&T Park. The Giants are hitting .312 against southpaws at home this season.
Saturday’s second game of the three-game set (7:10 p.m. ET, FOX) is a better spot to wager Boston, as Clay Buchholz (10-4, 2.47 ERA) takes the ball opposite San Francisco’s Joe Martinez (0-1, 4.91 ERA).
Buchholz is likely headed to the All-Star Game after tossing 6 2-3 scoreless innings in Beantown’s 2-0 win as -155 chalk over the Dodgers on Sunday. The righthander is 7-1 with a 1.62 ERA in his last eight starts, during which the Red Sox are 6-2 against the money line.
Tim Wakefield gets the call for Boston in Friday night’s series opener (10:15 p.m. ET), while San Francisco sends Jonathan Sanchez (5-5, 2.90 ERA) to the hill.
The Giants have cashed five of Sanchez’ last seven starts, as they’ve gone 6-1 'over.' That fits into a larger betting trend with San Francisco, which is 8-1 in its last nine interleague home games. The Giants are 12-5-1 'over' in their last 18 contests.
Oddsmakers opened San Francisco as -125 money line favorites for Friday night’s game with the total set at 8½ runs. Boston was on the board as +105 underdogs.
Bettors are advised to check the injury report before wagering on the series. Victor Martinez (head), and J.D. Drew (strained right hamstring) are dealing with injuries this week, while Jacoby Ellsbury (left chest contusion) and Jeremy Hermida (bruised ribs) remain on the 15-day disabled list.
