The Boston Red Sox will play their second game of a three-game series versus the Seattle Mariners on Tuesday night at 7:00 PM ET from Safeco Field in Seattle, Washington.
The Mariners squeaked out a victory last night off of a three-run home run from Mitch Haniger late in the game but almost gave up the lead off of a pair of single-run shots from the Red Sox to win the game 5-4.
This is an important series for both teams, especially Boston. Boston was tied with Toronto for the final wild-card spot in the American League until their loss put them a game back last night, and Seattle sits three back of Boston in the standings.
A sweep is mandatory for the Mariners. However, the last time these teams played this season was back in April in Boston, where the two teams split a four-game series.
Red Sox Need To Pick It Up
Like many of the teams in the AL Wild Card race aside from the Toronto Blue Jays, the Red Sox have been slumping heading into this series, and it continued Monday night.
The Sox have now lost 5 of their last 6 games, and much of that is due to a lack of pitching.
The Red Sox have always been able to score runs, and they are fourth in runs per game at just over five runs per game and 18th in runs allowed per contest at around 4.68.
They are also 11th in run differential at +0.36, and the offense from the plate has been great this year, sitting at third in hitting with a team batting average of .260 and eighth in home runs per game at 1.32.
Nathan Eovaldi will get the start on the bump for the Red Sox, and he has been their ace for much of this season. Eovaldi is 10-8 with a 3.57 ERA in 28 starts. The right-handed pitcher has looked great in his two September starts, allowing three runs in 13.1 innings pitched.
Rafael Devers and Xander Bogaerts have led the way offensively, and they both hit a home run in last night’s loss.
Seattle Mariners Need A Sweep
The Mariners will start left-hander Tyler Anderson on the mound for this pivotal game versus the Sox. Anderson is 6-9 on the season with a 4.20 ERA in 26 total starts.
As of late, the left-handed pitcher has struggled in September, allowing seven earned runs in 10.2 innings pitched.
Mitch Haniger and Kyle Seager have led the way offensively for the Mariners, and both of them contributed big last night, especially Haniger with a three-run shot to take the lead with his 33rd home run of the year.
Prediction
Boston has been trending in the wrong direction, but so has Tyler Anderson, and the Red Sox offense will be able to take advantage of that.
Seattle will need to score runs to win this game, and with Nathan Eovaldi on the mound for the Red Sox, that will come harder than usual against the Sox, especially for a Mariners team that does not score a lot anyway.
I like the Red Sox to win this one as a -140 favorite.
Final Pick: Red Sox ML (-140)
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