Minnesota Twins vs Tampa Bay Rays Prediction, Preview and Odds - 06/07/2023

Game Time: 6:40 pm ET, Wednesday, June 7, 2023

Venue:  Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg, FL

Where to Watch: BSSUN

DraftKings:  Moneyline odds:  Twins +120, Rays -140; Over/Under:  8.5 runs

Bet365:  Moneyline odds:  Twins +120, Rays -140; Over/Under:  8.5 runs

BetMGM:  Moneyline odds:  Twins +120, Rays -145; Over/Under:  8.5 runs

Minnesota Twins:  31-29 (1st place, AL Central)

Tampa Bay Rays:  43-19 (1st place, AL East)

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Minnesota Twins:  5-5 last 10

Tampa Bay Rays:  6-4 last 10

The Twins are entering this game on a 2 game losing streak but split their 4-game series against the Cleveland Guardians 2-2 in their last series. They enter this game with a 31-29 record overall and have a road record of 13-15. This is the 2nd game of a 3-game series with the Rays on Wednesday with the series opener of this series still to be played on Tuesday. Their offense ranks 21st in the MLB with a .718 OPS. Louie Varland is their starting pitcher on Tuesday while Pablo López is making his start in this game on Wednesday. He is 3-3 with a 4.54 ERA this season. His team won their last 2 straight games this season with him making an appearance. In his last MLB regular season start, he allowed 6 ER, 0 HR, and 1 BB with 5 Ks on 8 hits through 5.2 IP against the Cleveland Guardians.

The Rays are entering this game on a 3 game winning streak and won their 4-game series against the Boston Red Sox 2-1 in their last series. They enter this game with a 43-19 record overall and have a home record of 26-6. This is the 2nd game of a 3-game series with the Twins on Wednesday with the 1st game of this series still to be played on Tuesday. Their offense ranks 1st in the MLB with a .817 OPS. Zach Eflin is their starting pitcher on Tuesday while Shawn Armstrong is making his start in this game on Wednesday. He is 0-0 with a 0.00 ERA this season. His team won the only game this season with him making an appearance. In his last MLB regular season start, he allowed 0 earned runs, 0 homers, and 0 BB with 3 strikeouts on 1 hit through 1.2 innings played against the Texas Rangers.

The current betting odds have the Rays listed as a slight favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. The Rays are entering this game with the best record in the entire MLB and the best offense too. They also have the best home record in the MLB while the Twins have struggled a lot more in their road games this season. The Twins are starting Lopez in this game but he hasn't been as good for the Twins this season as he was for the Marlins last year. The Rays have the best offense in the league and with the way they have been crushing the ball lately, they are going to put up runs on Lopez here with the way he has been struggling more in his starts. The Rays are going to be going with the bullpen in this game but even though their offense has been the best in the league, their pitching hasn't taken much of a hit either as they still have a great pitching staff this season like they usually do. The Rays have so many weapons in the bullpen and in their batting lineup to lean on here that they should have no trouble with a team that is leading their division but struggling to stay above .500 too. The Rays are going to keep rolling and they have been so tough to beat at home. The best way to place a bet here is on the Rays to win this game.

Twins Rays Prediction:  Our MLB Pick for Wednesday, June 7, 2023 (6:40 pm ET start time) is Rays 6 Twins 2.

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Minnesota Twins: 4-14 (-9.2 units) on the moneyline as an underdog of +100 to +150. 31-43 (-12.2 units) on the moneyline on the road when the total is 8 to 8.5. 48-27 OVER as a road underdog of +100 to +150. 14-3 OVER revenging a road blowout loss vs opponent of 6 runs or more.

Tampa Bay Rays: 43-19 (+19.5 units) on the moneyline in all games. 26-6 (+17.9 units) on the moneyline in home games. 21-10 OVER in home games. 11-4 OVER at home when the total is 8 to 8.5.

Minnesota Twins:  R. Lewis (SS) Ques Tues - Face. C. Correa (SS) Ques Tues - Heel. B. Buxton (DH) Ques Tues - Ribs. A. Kirilloff (RF) Ques Tues - Illness. C. Sands (SP) Out indefinitely - Shoulder. J. Gallo (1B) Out indefinitely - Hamstring. T. Larnach (RF) Mid June - Illness. G. Celestino (CF) Late June - Thumb. N. Gordon (2B) Out indefinitely - Shin. K. Maeda (SP) Mid June - Tricep. J. Alcala (RP) Out indefinitely - Forearm. T. Mahle (SP) out for season - Elbow. C. Paddack (SP) Early Sept - Elbow.

Tampa Bay Rays:  B. Lowe (2B) Out Indefinitely - Back. J. Siri (CF) Ques Tues - Shoulder. J. Fleming (SP) Out indefinitely - Elbow. D. Rasmussen (RP) Early Aug - Elbow. P. Fairbanks (RP) Out indefinitely - Hip. Z. Littell (RP) Mid June - Shoulder. 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.

“We didn’t have enough good at-bats. You’re not going to win striking out that many times and struggling when you do get a guy on base and you can’t bring him in.” - Rocco Baldelli after his team’s loss against the Guardians in their game on Sunday.

“You want to get greedy, certainly in this ballpark against that team. You’ve got to find a way to get greedy. And they prevented that early on.” - Kevin Cash after his team’s win against the Red Sox in their game on Monday.

Jorge Polanco (S) 2B

Royce Lewis (R) DH

Donovan Solano (R) 1B

Max Kepler (L) RF

Ryan Jeffers (R) C

Kyle Farmer (R) SS

Willi Castro (S) 3B

Kyle Garlick (R) LF

Michael A. Taylor (R) CF

Yandy Diaz (R) DH

Wander Franco (S) SS

Josh Lowe (L) RF

Isaac Paredes (R) 1B

Taylor Walls (S) 3B

Luke Raley (L) LF

Manuel Margot (R) CF

Vidal Brujan (S) 2B

Francisco Mejia (S) C

Batting Average:  Matt Wallner (.368)

Hits:  Byron Buxton (40)

Home Runs:  Joey Gallo (11)

RBI:  Trevor Larnach (27)

Stolen Bases:  Willi Castro (11)

Wins:  Joe Ryan (7)

Saves:  Jhoan Duran (8)

ERA:  Cole Sands (0.73)

Batting Average:  Yandy Diaz (.316)

Hits:  Wander Franco (70)

Home Runs:  Yandy Diaz (12)

RBI:  Randy Arozarena (40)

Stolen Bases:  Wander Franco (21)

Wins:  Shane McClanahan (9)

Saves:  Jason Adam (9)

ERA:  Chase Anderson (0.00)

Managers:

Minnesota Twins: Rocco Baldelli (5th season)

Tampa Bay Rays: Kevin Cash (9th season)