Boston Red Sox (Ryan Dempster 4-6, 4.40) @ Baltimore Orioles (Chris Tillman 6-2, 3.89)
The American League East is once again as tightly contested as any division in the MLB. Four teams are within 5 games of first place and you can bet your money that it will be equally as close as the season wears on. This is the 2nd of a 3-game series between the first place Boston Red Sox and third place Baltimore Orioles who are only 2.5 games back of Boston for the division lead, after winning a 13-inning thriller on a walk-off Chris Davis single on Thursday.
While we all love great pitching, nothing beats watching two teams who can absolutely crush the ball. Boston and Baltimore are two of the best hitting teams in the MLB as they are both top-5 in the majors in batting average and runs scored. With two teams putting mediocre pitchers on the mound, I fully expect these two teams to light up the scoreboard tonight.
Another reason that this is a great match-up is because of how similar these two teams are. Some of the similarities:
- Boston is #1 in the MLB in runs scored. Baltimore is #4.
- Boston is #3 in the MLB in team batting average. Baltimore is #4.
- Baltimore has a .562 winning percentage at home. Boston has a .606 winning percentage on the road.
- Both teams are 6-4 in their last 10 games.
To me this game is really a toss up. It'll be a slug-fest and I think that the team that makes doesn't strike out at the plate and that can make the plays in the field will be the team that wins and that is why I'm going with Baltimore. Baltimore is the best fielding team in the major leagues and is also extremely disciplined at the plate with only 430 strikeouts which is the 3rd least in the big leagues, while the Red Sox are the most struck out team in the majors. I think that Baltimore will ride their momentum from last night's victory and secure a series win while inching to only 1.5 games behind the division lead.
Prediction: Baltimore Orioles (8-5)
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