The Rays get a visit from the Toronto Blue Jays in baseball action on Friday, with the home side looking to send the visitors to the showers with a loss.

It's a pitching duel between Jeremy Hellickson for the Rays (10-6 on the year) and R.A. Dickey for Toronto (9-11 so far).



View Toronto vs Tampa Bay Odds and Stats.

Betting Line:
Sportsbooks such as Sportsbook had set the Rays as -143 favorites on the moneyline for this contest. The over under was hovering near 8 for bettors hoping to turn a profit on totals at Sportsbook.

Power Rankings:
The Rays sit at No. 5 in the American League in the current MLB power poll here at Odds Shark, while the Blue Jays sit at an American League No. 10 on the same chart.



How They Match Up:
Offensively, the game matches up Tampa Bay's No. 7 ranked American League offense (4.5 runs per game) against a Blue Jays defense and pitching staff that sits at No. 14 in the American League at 4.9 runs allowed per game. The Rays have been averaging 8.9 hits per game, more than the Blue Jays have managed so far this season (8.6 hits on average).

Pitching and defensive stats are important baseball handicapping factors and Tampa Bay has the American League's No. 6-ranked defense. In the other dugout, the Blue Jays own the American League's No. 14 mark in runs allowed.

The Blue Jays were a 2-1 Sportsbook in their most recent outing at home against the Red Sox. That made Sportsbooks of bettors who got Toronto at +105 on the moneyline, while the total score (3) was good news for UNDER bettors. The Blue Jays grabbed a win last time out, defeating Jake Peavy and the Red Sox 2-1 on Thursday at Rogers Centre.

The Rays were a 7-1 Sportsbook in their most recent outing at home against the Mariners. That made Sportsbooks of bettors who got Tampa Bay at -205 on the moneyline, while the total score (8) was good news for UNDER bettors. The Rays enjoyed a 7-1 victory at the expense of the Mariners on Thursday, with Alex Cobb throwing 5 innings of 3-hit ball at Tropicana Field.


Toronto Blue Jays Trends:
When playing on Friday are 6-4
Before playing Tampa Bay are 2-8
After playing Boston are 7-3
After a win are 5-5

Tampa Bay Rays Trends:
When playing on Friday are 3-7
Before playing Toronto are 9-1
After playing Seattle are 6-4
After a win are 6-4

A few Blue Jays at Rays trends to consider:
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Toronto's last 8 games when playing Tampa Bay
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Toronto's last 7 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Toronto's last 5 games
Toronto is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Tampa Bay
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Tampa Bay's last 8 games when playing Toronto
Tampa Bay is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing Toronto
Tampa Bay is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games at home
Tampa Bay is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Toronto


Next up:
Toronto at Tampa Bay, Saturday, August 17