It doesn’t take an in-depth knowledge of baseball to know that the Tampa Bay Rays and Cleveland Indians have been on opposite ends of the competence spectrum in recent history. So, it shouldn’t be a shock that the Indians have won 10 of the past 11 meetings with the Rays, which includes the Tribe going 5-1 against the Rays last season.
Carlos Carrasco, who gets the start for the Indians in the series opener Monday, has been the lone bright spot in a struggling Cleveland rotation. The righty has the fourth-best ERA in the MLB (1.86), is tied for the league lead in WHIP (0.77) and has a K/BB ratio of 48/8 through his first seven starts. In Carrasco’s last four starts, he has tallied 27 strikeouts to just one walk.
Outside of one rough outing, Chris Archer has bounced back in a big way after a down season last year. The right-hander has allowed two or fewer runs in five of his eight starts and has pitched into the seventh inning or later on five occasions. Archer has struggled against the Tribe, though, going 0-5 with a 5.14 ERA in five career starts against Cleveland.
Sportsbook Odds & Computer Pick
The Cleveland Indians were listed as -137 moneyline favorites earlier in the day at Sportsbook, while odds makers set the Sportsbook total line around 7.5 earlier at Sportsbook.
Odds Shark prediction models pick the Rays to win this game 4.2-3.7. View the computer score prediction and who will win the pick on the moneyline for all upcoming MLB matchups here.
Tampa Bay Rays vs Cleveland Indians Matchup
Team Betting Records & Power Rankings
The Cleveland Indians bring a 19-17 record to the battle against the 19-21 Rays. Stay Informed: follow us on Twitter for odds specials, betting line moves and Cleveland vs Tampa Bay injuries news.
According to MLB Power Rankings here, it's the No. 10-ranked Cleveland Indians and the No. 9-rated Tampa Bay Rays in this matchup.
Statistical Matchup
At the plate, Cleveland owns the No. 24 ranking for hits at 7.94 per game. By contrast, the Tampa Bay Rays are rated No. 18 in the same category at 8.27 per game.
Tampa Bay brings the No. 8-rated defense to this matchup, facing the Indians's No. 3-ranked defense.
Recent Outings Betting Recap
The Rays grabbed a win last time out, defeating D Pomeranz and the Red Sox 11-2 on Sunday at Fenway Park.
Cleveland rolled to a 8-3 win against Minnesota on Sunday, as T Bauer and the Indians' bats led the team to victory at Progressive Field.
Next Betting Matchups
Tampa Bay at Cleveland, Tuesday, May 16th