Toronto Blue Jays vs Tampa Bay Rays Prediction, Preview and Odds - 05/23/2023

Game Time: 6:40 pm ET, Tuesday, May 23, 2023

Venue:  Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg, FL

Where to Watch:  BSSUN

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

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

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

Toronto Blue Jays:  25-22 (5th place, AL East)

Tampa Bay Rays:  34-14 (1st place, AL East)

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Toronto Blue Jays:  4-6 last 10

Tampa Bay Rays:  5-5 last 10

The Blue Jays are entering this game on a 4 game losing streak after getting swept 3-0 in a 3-game series by the Baltimore Orioles in their last series. They enter this game with a 25-22 record overall and have a road record of 12-13. This is the 2nd game of a 4-game series with the Rays on Tuesday with the series opener still to be played on Monday. Their offense ranks 12th in the MLB with a .736 OPS. Chris Bassitt is their starting pitcher on Monday while José Berríos is making his start in this game on Tuesday. He is 3-4 with a 4.61 ERA this season. His team won 2 of their last 3 games this season with him making an appearance. In his last MLB regular season start, he allowed 3 ER, 1 HR, and 1 BB with 8 Ks on 6 hits through 6.2 IP against the New York Yankees.

The Rays are entering this game off of a loss in their last game but won their 3-game series against the Milwaukee Brewers 2-1 in their last series. They enter this game with a 34-14 record overall and have a home record of 21-4. This is the 2nd game of a 4-game series with the Blue Jays on Tuesday with the 1st game of the series still to be played on Monday. Their offense ranks 1st in the MLB with a .847 OPS. Trevor Kelley is their starting pitcher on Monday while rookie Taj Bradley is making his start in this game on Tuesday. He is 3-0 with a 3.54 ERA this season. His team won 3 of their 4 games this season with him making an appearance. In his last MLB regular season start, he allowed 2 earned runs, 1 homer, and 2 BB with 4 strikeouts on 3 hits through 5 innings played against the New York Mets.

The current betting odds have the Rays listed as a slight favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. The Rays are off to a great start this season as they have the best record in the MLB right now and have the best offense too. Their pitching is still great like it has been in past seasons but now they have a really good offense to back that up and have been scoring a ton of runs in their games. The Blue Jays haven't been great this season as they are hovering right around .500 and just got swept by the Orioles in their last series which was also at home. The Rays always play well against the Blue Jays in previous years but they are going to have some extra motivation here since the Blue Jays beat them in a series earlier this season which was not only their 1st series loss of the year, but the Jays also ended their 13 game winning streak to start the season when they had the chance to be the 1st ever team in the MLB to start the season 14-0. The Rays have been great at home this year with their 21-4 record there and they are going to be coming for revenge in this entire series. The pitching matchup doesn't really matter here as the Rays have a much better pitching staff than the Blue Jays do and now their offense is even better too. The best way to place a bet here is on the Rays to win this game.

Blue Jays Rays Prediction:  Our MLB Pick for Tuesday, May 23, 2023 (6:40 pm ET start time) is Rays 8 Blue Jays 4.

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Toronto Blue Jays: 5-12 (-12 units) on the moneyline against division opponents. 7-12 (-10 units) on the moneyline in May games. 12-7 OVER in May games. 24-13 OVER after 6 consecutive games versus division rivals.

Tampa Bay Rays: 34-14 (+16.4 units) on the moneyline in all games. 20-4 (+14.1 units) on the moneyline as a home favorite of -110 or higher. 27-18 OVER in all games. 13-7 OVER when the total is 8 to 8.5.

Toronto Blue Jays:  S. Espinal (2B) Ques Mon - Hamstring. Z. Pop (RP) Early June - Hamstring. M. White (SP) Early June - Elbow. A. Cimber (RP) Prob Mon - Back. C. Green (RP) Late July - Elbow. H. Ryu (SP) Mid July - Elbow.

Tampa Bay Rays:  T. Glasnow (SP) Early June - Oblique. S. Armstrong (RP) Early June - Neck. D. Rasmussen (RP) Out indefinitely - Elbow. G. Cleavinger (RP) out for season - Knee. J. Springs (RP) out for season - Elbow. S. Baz (SP) out for season - Elbow. A. Kittredge (RP) Late July - Elbow.

“The effort is there, the results are not. You hate going through stretches like this.” - John Schneider after his team’s loss against the Orioles in their game on Sunday.

“He had said earlier today that he was going to hit a home run and then he was going do the pose and I didn’t believe him. But obviously he hit a home run and just posed." - Randy Arozarena after their loss against the Brewers in their game on Sunday.

George Springer (R) RF

Bo Bichette (R) SS

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (R) 1B

Brandon Belt (L) DH

Matt Chapman (R) 3B

Whit Merrifield (R) 2B

Alejandro Kirk (R) C

Nathan Lukes (L) LF

Kevin Kiermaier (L) CF

Yandy Diaz (R) 1B

Wander Franco (S) SS

Brandon Lowe (L) 2B

Randy Arozarena (R) LF

Harold Ramirez (R) DH

Josh Lowe (L) RF

Taylor Walls (S) 3B

Manuel Margot (R) CF

Francisco Mejia (S) C

Batting Average:  Bo Bichette (.320)

Hits:  Bo Bichette (64)

Home Runs:  Bo Bichette (9)

RBI:  Bo Bichette (30)

Stolen Bases:  Whit Merrifield (13)

Wins:  Chris Bassitt (5)

Saves:  Jordan Romano (10)

ERA:  Thomas Hatch (0.00)

Batting Average:  Yandy Diaz (.329)

Hits:  Randy Arozarena (51)

Home Runs:  Yandy Diaz (11)

RBI:  Randy Arozarena (36)

Stolen Bases:  Wander Franco (14)

Wins:  Shane McClanahan (7)

Saves:  Jason Adam (6)

ERA:  Chase Anderson (0.00)

Managers:

Toronto Blue Jays: John Schneider (2nd season)

Tampa Bay Rays: Kevin Cash (9th season)