Free MLB Picks Today: Baltimore Orioles vs Boston Red Sox 9/9/22

The Boston Red Sox (67-71) take one of the most productive lineups in the AL on the road to face the Baltimore Orioles (72-65) at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on Friday to open a three-game series. The Red Sox are in the midst of a six-game road trip. They were just swept in three games against the Rays, dropping the finale 1-0 on Wednesday at Tropicana Field. Kike Hernandez was 2 for 5 with a double. The Orioles are kicking off the final series of their 10-game homestand. They lost three of four against the Blue Jays in their last series, dropping the finale 4-1 on Wednesday at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Ryan Mountcastle went 1 for 4 with a double and one RBI.

HEAD-TO-HEAD

The Orioles have won seven of 12 in the season series between the AL East rivals, including a 5-3 victory in their most recent meeting on August 21 at Muncy Bank Ballpark. Reliever Cionel Perez was credited with the win after throwing one scoreless inning, and Felix Bautista pitched the ninth to earn his eighth save.

ON THE MOUND

Brayan Bello (1-4, 5.91 ERA) is slated to start for Boston. The RHP threw six scoreless innings in his last start, a 5-3 home win over the Rangers on Saturday. He was credited with the win, yielding three hits while striking out five and walking one. For Baltimore, righty Austin Voth (4-2, 4.48 ERA) gets the ball. It’s his first appearance of the season against the Red Sox. Voth made one appearance against the Red Sox in 2021, throwing one innings for the Nationals in a 5-3 home defeat on October 2. He didn’t give up a hit and struck out two. In his last start on Saturday, Voth took a no-decision at home against the Athletics. He threw 3.1 innings and gave up one run on six hits, striking out four, in the 8-1 win.

AT THE PLATE

The Boston offense is averaging 4.5 runs per game for the season, third best in the AL, with a slash line of .258/.319/.410. Rafael Devers leads the team in OPS at .878. The third baseman is slashing .289/.348/.530 with 25 home runs, 73 RBIs, and 74 runs over 119 games. Over the last five games, however, Boston has averaged only 3.4 runs a game while performing worse across the board (.232/.315/.366). Against righties like Voth this season, the Sox have a .720 OPS. Devers also is the team’s most potent producer against right-handers with a .924 OPS in 345 at-bats. Baltimore is slashing .236/.303/.391 for the season and averaging 4.2 runs per game. Anthony Santander leads the team with a .799 OPS. The right fielder has 27 home runs, 79 RBIs, and 67 runs scored with a slash line of .255/.333/.466. The O’s have a .698 OPS against right-handers in 2022. With a .796 OPS over 358 at-bats, Cedric Mullins has been their best hitter against right-handers.

HOME AND AWAY

Boston is on a three-game losing streak in road games, bringing their record to 32-37 in 2022. The Sox have scored 4.4 runs per game away from home, while allowing 4.6 runs. Baltimore has gone 40-28 at home this season, averaging 4.4 runs per game while surrendering 4.0. In the last 10 games at Oriole Park at Camden Yards between the teams, Baltimore is 6-4 with an average scoreline of 4.7-3.8.

STANDINGS UPDATE

The Red Sox are fifth in the AL East, 16 games behind the division-leading Yankees. The Orioles are fourth in the AL East, 11 games behind the Yankees. They are fourth in the Wild Card race, four games out of a postseason position.

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*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.