The Toronto Blue Jays and Tampa Bay Rays close out their three-game series Thursday afternoon at Tropicana Field, with first pitch set for 1:10 p.m. ET.
Tampa Bay enters the finale at 76-50 and sitting atop the AL East, while Toronto comes in at 62-66. The first two games of the series have produced 28 combined runs, with each team taking a turn landing the bigger punch.
Toronto opened the series Tuesday with a 10-5 win, a victory highlighted by Kaz Okamoto launching his 25th home run of the season to set a new Blue Jays rookie record. Josh Smith and Alejandro Kirk also went deep as Toronto continued a strong stretch that has seen it win 13 of its last 19 games.
The Rays responded on Wednesday, but the 7-6 final score doesn’t quite capture how much Toronto made them sweat. Tampa Bay jumped out to a 7-1 advantage before the Blue Jays scored four times in the fifth and added another run in the sixth, turning what looked like a comfortable Rays win into a game that remained up for grabs late.
That sets up a Thursday afternoon rubber match between a Rays team trying to protect its spot atop the division and a Blue Jays club still very much involved in the AL Wild Card race. Toronto enters the finale one game behind Minnesota for the third Wild Card spot, giving the Jays plenty to play for as they try to leave St. Petersburg with a series win.
Thursday’s pitching matchup features Shane Bieber for Toronto opposite Tampa Bay left-hander Ian Seymour. Bieber enters at 4-2 with a 4.99 ERA, while Seymour is 9-3 with a 4.11 ERA.
Blue Jays vs. Rays Odds Today
- Moneyline: Blue Jays (+150), Rays (-160)
- Run Line: Blue Jays +1.5 (-150), Rays -1.5 (+140)
- Total: Over 7.5 (+110), Under 7.5 (-120)
Hard Rock Bet’s 10¢ Summer Sale is available throughout the month of August, offering reduced-vig dime lines on pregame MLB Moneyline, Run Line and Total markets with odds between -250 and +250.
Best Bet for Blue Jays vs. Rays
Before placing any bets, head over to Hard Rock Bet Sportsbook‘s Stats Hub, which features trends and matchup data for every baseball game on the slate. One Blue Jays player’s recent streak stands out ahead of Thursday’s series finale:
Kazuma Okamoto Over 0.5 Hits (-145): Okamoto has recorded at least one hit in five consecutive contests entering Thursday’s rubber game. That stretch includes each of the first two games of this series against Tampa Bay. Okamoto went 1-5 with a home run in Tuesday’s opener before finishing 1-3 with an RBI and a walk on Wednesday.
The streak began during Toronto’s series against the Yankees, when Okamoto picked up one hit in all three games, including a double on Sunday. He has now recorded a hit in seven of his last eight games, with his lone hitless performance during that span coming against Boston on August 13.
Okamoto has also been one of Toronto’s biggest power threats this season, leading the club with 25 home runs and 73 RBI entering Thursday. He doesn’t need to leave the yard to cash this one, though. With Okamoto consistently finding his way into the hit column and already delivering in both games of this series, we’ll ride the hot bat and back over 0.5 hits (-145).
Blue Jays vs. Rays Betting Splits
Players at Hard Rock Bet are firmly behind Tampa Bay to lock up a series win:
- The Rays have attracted 77.8% of all moneyline tickets and 78.2% of the handle.
- Rays -1.5 has received 67.2% of the bets and 57.5% of the dollars.
- Bettors are leaning toward another high-scoring game, with Over 7.5 drawing 61.9% of tickets and 45.1% of the handle.
Top 5 Most-Bet Player Props
Rays slugger Junior Caminero headlines Thursday afternoon’s most-bet player props:
- Junior Caminero – Over 0.5 Home Runs
- Ian Seymour – Over 5.5 Strikeouts
- Yandy Diaz – Over 0.5 Hits
- Junior Caminero – Over 0.5 To Record 1+ Hits
- Ian Seymour – Over 3.5 Strikeouts
Blue Jays vs. Rays Game Info
- 📍 Where: Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg, Florida
- 📅 Date: Thursday, August 20
- ⏰ First Pitch: 1:10 PM ET
- 📺💻 TV/Streaming: MLB.TV
- ⚾ Probable Pitchers:
- Blue Jays: Shane Bieber (4-2, 4.99 ERA)
- Rays: Ian Seymour (9-3, 4.11 ERA)
More Ways to Bet
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