After a day off Monday, the Toronto Blue Jays will open a three-game set with the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday at Rogers Centre.

Toronto is coming off a 5-4 win on Sunday over the Detroit Tigers. George Springer hit a pair of homers as part of a three-hit day to help the Blue Jays salvage the final contest of the three-game series against Detroit.

The Rays, meanwhile, are coming off a split in a four-game series with the Yankees in The Bronx. Prior to that, the Rays pulled off series wins against Cleveland and the aforementioned Yankees, so they’re playing some good baseball right now.

Let’s dive into the game odds for Tuesday’s clash between the Rays and Blue Jays via bet365:

Rays vs. Blue Jays odds

Rays Moneyline Odds	+115
Blue Jays Moneyline Odds	-135
Runline Odds	Blue Jays -1.5 (+150), Rays +1.5 (-180)
Over/Under	Over 8.5 runs (+100), Under 8.5 runs (-120)
Time/Date	July 23, 7:07 p.m. ET
TV	Broadcast: Sportsnet, Sportsnet+

Betting Tampa Bay Rays (50-50 SU, 49-51 ATS, 49-49-2 o/u)

It’s been a frustrating year for the injury-riddled Rays, but somehow they’re still in the American League wild card mix after 100 games, sitting 5.5 games out of the final playoff spot. They have a minus-66 run differential, by far the worst of the teams still in playoff contention, but it wouldn’t be surprising to see the pesky Rays close the gap further on a playoff spot down the stretch, if and when they get healthy.

Tampa’s major issue this season has been its inability to put runs on the board. The Rays are averaging just 3.9 runs per game (27th in the majors) and they’ve swatted just 96 homers (26th in MLB). They’re compensating for the lack of power by stealing bases, though, ranking fifth in the big leagues with 99 thefts. Seven Rays players are on pace to record double digits in steals, with Jose Caballero leading the way with 25 steals to this point.

Betting Toronto Blue Jays (45-54 SU, 49-50 ATS, 51-45-3 o/u)

With just over a week until the trade deadline, bettors will want to monitor Toronto’s lineup card very closely before placing wagers over the next handful of games. Several players, especially those on expiring contracts, are expected to be moved by July 31 so this team will likely look drastically different in August.

One player not likely going anywhere, though, is George Springer, who has hit a blistering .377 with eight homers and 25 RBIs over his last 21 games. The 34-year-old is under contract for two more seasons at a salary of roughly $25 million, a number that makes the veteran outfielder very difficult to potentially move in a trade, especially considering his early-season struggles.

This will be the third series between these two teams this season. The Rays have taken four of the previous seven meetings and the teams have played to a 4-3 o/u mark in those games.

Probable starting pitchers

Tampa Bay: RHP Shawn Armstrong (2-2, 5.91 ERA, 9.49 K/9, 1.64 WHIP)

Armstrong will be the opener for the Rays on Tuesday, with lefty Tyler Alexander slated to work bulk innings in relief. Armstrong last pitched Saturday against the Yankees, tossing a scoreless inning with a pair of strikeouts. He’s thrown just over two innings against Toronto this season and was torched for four runs – three earned – in those early-season matchups.

Toronto: RHP Jose Berrios (8-7, 4.01 ERA, 6.58 K/9, 1.18 WHIP)

Berrios has really struggled in three July starts, coughing up 14 earned runs and three home runs across 15 innings of work. He also walked seven batters during that stretch, including four Arizona Diamondbacks last time he took the mound. Berrios pitched well in his only previous start against Tampa this year, tossing six innings of two-run ball way back in March.

Weather

It’s tough to say whether or not the retractable dome at Rogers Centre will be open for this one with a 40% chance of thunderstorms in the early evening hours. If it’s open, temperatures will be around 25 C and winds will be blowing in from right field at just 4 mph.

MLB betting trends

The over is 8-0 in Toronto’s last eight games.
The over is 3-0 in Tampa’s last three games.
The Rays have covered the runline in 19 of their last 29 games.

MLB player prop trends

Rays outfielder Jose Siri will take a five-game hitting streak into action Tuesday and he’s homered in back-to-back games. He’s -145 to get a hit and +700 to homer again.
Springer has four multi-hit games over his last eight contests and three home runs across his last three games. He’s +200 to record over 1.5 hits and +550 to homer.
Berrios has allowed six hits or more in seven of his last 10 starts. He’s +132 to allow more than 5.5 hits on Tuesday.

Rays vs. Blue Jays predictions

I’m going to be bold here and predict the Blue Jays to score at least one run in the bottom of the first inning at +210 odds. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Springer are a combined 12-for-20 (.600) with six RBIs in their careers against Armstrong and both should come to bat in the opening inning (assuming Springer leads off and Vlad hits third – but check the lineup card before placing your wager).
From a player props perspective, let’s go with Springer to stay hot with over 1.5 total bases at +110 odds.
I’m also going to place a half-unit wager on the Toronto moneyline (-135). The Jays have the rest and starting pitching advantage in this one. Tampa’s bullpen has also experienced moderate usage over the last three games, so it’s not an ideal spot to use an opener.