Atlanta Braves vs Tampa Bay Rays Prediction, Preview and Odds - 07/07/2023

Game Time: 6:40 pm ET, Friday, July 7, 2023

Venue:  Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg, FL

Where to Watch:  Apple TV+

DraftKings:  Moneyline odds:  Braves +105, Rays -125; Over/Under:  8.5 runs

Bet365:  Moneyline odds:  Braves +105, Rays -125; Over/Under:  8.5 runs

BetMGM:  Moneyline odds:  Braves +105, Rays -125; Over/Under:  8.5 runs

Atlanta Braves:  58-28 (1st place, NL East)

Tampa Bay Rays:  57-32 (1st place, AL East)

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Atlanta Braves:  9-1 last 10

Tampa Bay Rays:  4-6 last 10

The Braves are entering this series off of a win and won their 3-game series against the Cleveland Guardians 2-1 in their last series. They enter this game with a 58-28 record overall and have a road record of 28-13. This is the series opener of a 3-game series with the Rays on Friday and they have Thursday off as a day of rest. Their offense ranks 1st in the MLB with a .841 OPS. Michael Soroka was their starting pitcher on Wednesday while Charlie Morton is making his start in this game on Friday. He is 8-6 with a 3.57 ERA this season. His team won their last 3 straight games this season with him making an appearance. In his last MLB regular season start, he allowed 0 ER, 0 HR, and 1 BB with 5 Ks on 4 hits through 5.2 IP against the Miami Marlins.

The Rays entered their last series on a 2 game losing streak and lost their 3-game series against the Seattle Mariners 2-1. They enter this game with a 57-32 record overall and have a home record of 34-12. This is the 1st game of a 3-game series with the Braves on Friday with the series finale of their series against the Philadelphia Phillies still to be played on Thursday. They also lost the series opener and the 2nd game of that series on Tuesday and Wednesday. Their offense ranks 3rd in the MLB with a .792 OPS. Shawn Armstrong is their starting pitcher on Thursday while Tyler Glasnow is making his start in this game on Friday. He is 2-2 with a 4.50 ERA this season. His team lost 2 of their last 3 games this season with him making an appearance. In his last MLB regular season start, he allowed 3 earned runs, 1 homer, and 1 BB with 11 strikeouts on 7 hits through 5.2 innings played against the Seattle Mariners.

The current betting odds have the Braves listed as a slight underdog in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. The Braves have been rolling over the last few weeks with the best offense in the MLB now and the best record too after overtaking the Rays. The Rays have been having a great season but their record has been slipping lately and so has their offense as they now trail the Braves in both areas. The Rays haven't been at their best lately either as they just lost their home series against the Phillies while the Braves seem to be ramping up with every game. The Rays do have Glasnow starting here and he has been great in his starts this season, but he hasn't had many of them and he hasn't been great in every start either. The Braves have a really good offense right now and have been putting up a ton of runs in their games, they will take advantage of the scoring opportunities they get here and make sure to put up runs when they can. The Rays offense hasn't been as good though and they are going to struggle with Morton on the mound for the Braves. Morton has been pitching a lot better in his starts lately as he is settling into a groove this season and he will continue pitching well in this game as he tries to shut down the team that traded him away years ago. The Braves have all the motivation to prove to the Rays that they are the better team in the MLB too so the Braves will be looking to finish this series strong before going into the All-Star break. The best way to place a bet here is on the Braves to win this game.

Braves Rays Prediction:  Our MLB Pick for Friday, July 7, 2023 (6:40 pm ET start time) is Braves 5 Rays 3.

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Atlanta Braves: 12-20 (-13.2 units) on the moneyline against AL East opponents. 41-37 (-8.7 units) on the moneyline in an inter-league game. 23-13 OVER when the total is 7 to 8.5. 19-10 OVER after allowing 2 runs or less.

Tampa Bay Rays: 57-32 (+13.4 units) on the moneyline in all games. 34-12 (+15.3 units) on the moneyline in home games. 30-15 OVER in home games. 20-11 OVER against NL East opponents.

Atlanta Braves:  D. Lee (SP) Late July - Shoulder. M. Fried (SP) Late July - Forearm. E. Adrianza (2B) Mid July - Shoulder. J. Chavez (RP) Mid July - Shin. K. Wright (SP) Mid Aug - Shoulder. T. Matzek (RP) out for season - Elbow. H. Ynoa (SP) out for season - Elbow.

Tampa Bay Rays:  S. McClanahan (SP) Out indefinitely - Back. J. Fleming (SP) Late July - Elbow. A. Kittredge (RP) Early Aug - Elbow. D. Rasmussen (RP) Early Aug - Elbow. G. Cleavinger (RP) out for season - Knee. J. Springs (RP) out for season - Elbow. S. Baz (SP) out for season - Elbow.

"We’re really good at turning the page.” - Brian Snitker after his team’s win against the Guardians in their game on Wednesday.

“They ultimately took the lead and didn’t look back. But a lot of good at-bats by them and you know for us on the mound we just felt like we couldn’t kind of create that swing and miss that we generally do” - Kevin Cash after his team’s loss against the Phillies in their game on Wednesday.

Ronald Acuna Jr. (R) RF

Ozzie Albies (S) 2B

Austin Riley (R) 3B

Matt Olson (L) 1B

Sean Murphy (R) C

Marcell Ozuna (R) DH

Eddie Rosario (L) LF

Orlando Arcia (R) SS

Michael Harris II (L) CF

Yandy Diaz (R) DH

Wander Franco (S) SS

Luke Raley (L) 1B

Randy Arozarena (R) LF

Brandon Lowe (L) 2B

Manuel Margot (R) CF

Josh Lowe (L) RF

Taylor Walls (S) 3B

Francisco Mejia (S) C

Batting Average:  Ronald Acuna (.337)

Hits:  Ronald Acuna (117)

Home Runs:  Matt Olson (29)

RBI:  Matt Olson (70)

Stolen Bases:  Ronald Acuna (41)

Wins:  Spencer Strider (10)

Saves:  Raisel Iglesias (15)

ERA:  Dereck Rodriguez (0.00)

Batting Average:  Yandy Diaz (.310)

Hits:  Wander Franco (93)

Home Runs:  Jose Siri (16)

RBI:  Randy Arozarena (58)

Stolen Bases:  Wander Franco (27)

Wins:  Shane McClanahan (11)

Saves:  Jason Adam (11)

ERA:  Chase Anderson (0.00)

Managers:

Atlanta Braves: Brian Snitker (8th season)

Tampa Bay Rays: Kevin Cash (9th season)