The Houston Astros, they of the best record in baseball this season and the favorites to win a second World Series in three years, will face the winner of Wednesday’s AL Wild-Card game between Tampa Bay Rays and Oakland Athletics in the ALDS. The A’s are favored on the MLB odds to be the one to advance.

How to Bet Rays vs Athletics MLB Odds & Game Info

• When: Wednesday, 8 PM ET
• Where: Oakland Coliseum
• Probable pitchers (away/home): Charlie Morton/Sean Manaea
• TV: ESPN
• Live Stream: MLB.tv
• Radio: SiriusXM
• MLB Odds: Oakland Athletics -145 (Total 7.5)

Weather Forecast

• Sunny: 21°C/70°F
• Humidity: 44%
• Precipitation: 0%
• Cloud Cover: 0%
• Wind: 13 mph WNW
• Stadium Type: Open

Why Bet on Tampa Bay?

Wednesday will be the second Wild Card Game in club history, following a 4-0 win on Oct 2, 2013 at Cleveland. The second Wild Card was introduced in 2012 and the home team is 6-8 in these games (4-3 in AL, 2-5 in NL). This will be the fifth “winner take all” game in franchise history and the Rays are 3-1 in the previous four.

Rays second baseman Eric Sogard is hoping to be available for Wednesday’s game. Sogard hasn’t appeared in a game since September 15 due to soreness in his right foot, but he took some swings on Sunday and is said to be making progress. The utility infielder has produced an .810 OPS with 13 home runs and eight stolen bases in 110 games this season between the Blue Jays and Rays. On Sunday, the Rays also activated infielder Yandy Diaz from the 60-day injured list. He has produced a strong .823 OPS with 14 home runs in 78 games this season.

Trusting in Morton

It’s All-Star right-hander Charlie Morton (16-6, 3.05) on the mound for Tampa. Morton was the obvious choice to start the game. He started 33 games this season and was one of just three Rays players who didn’t land on the injured list. He also led the Rays with a 5.1 WAR, per Baseball Reference, and was named team co-MVP with Austin Meadows by Tampa Bay’s Baseball Writers’ Association of America chapter. Morton recorded the last out of the 2017 World Series with the Astros, and his experience should help the Rays, who have only 10 players on the active roster with playoff experience.

Morton is looking to extend his dominance of the A’s. The righty allowed one run over 13 1/3 innings (0.68 ERA) vs. Oakland in two starts this year and has a 2.97 ERA vs. the A’s in his career.

The Rays are 13-8 against the Athletics in the last three seasons. Since July 22, 2016, 16 of the 23 games have been decided by 2 runs (or fewer) and 13 of the 23 have been decided by 1-run margins.

Team Stats

• Runs: 4.74
• Hits: 8.79
• Walks: 3.36
• Strike Outs: 9.20

• Runs: 4.02
• Hits: 7.86
• Walks: 2.78
• Strike Outs: 10.00

Why Bet on Oakland?

The A’s return to the postseason for the second consecutive season, fifth time in the last eight years and 10th time in the last 20 seasons. Over the last eight years, only the Dodgers (7) have more than five postseason appearances and over the last 20 seasons only the Yankees (16), Cardinals (13), Dodgers (11) and Braves (11) have more than 10.

This is the 28th postseason appearance in franchise history, which includes 20 with Oakland and eight with Philadelphia. That is fourth most all-time. Oakland has reached the postseason for the fourth time as the American League Wild Card, the third time in the two wild card era. The A’s were 37-36 at the conclusion of play on June 16 but have gone 60-29 since then, which is the best record in the majors.

The Rays went 3-4 against the Athletics this season, and all 7 games were played over a 14-day stretch from June 10-23. The Rays lost two of three at Tropicana Field from June 10-12 and lost two of four in Oakland from June 20-23, including a walkoff loss in the series opener.

Manaea’s Time

Expected to be lefty Sean Manaea (4-0, 1.21) on the mound. Manaea allowed a run on four hits over six innings in last Thursday’s 3-1 win over the Mariners. He cruised through the first four innings before the M’s strung together a pair of hits — a Kyle Seager leadoff single followed by an Austin Nola RBI double — in the fifth inning to get on the board.

Manaea went on to get through the fifth and work another scoreless inning in the sixth before exiting. He didn’t walk a batter while striking out five in the outing. The A’s were certainly anxious to get the 27-year-old back but few could have predicted just how dominant Manaea would be upon his return from surgery. He had a 0.78 WHIP and 30/7 K/BB ratio across 29 2/3 innings of work.

Team Stats

• Runs: 5.23
• Hits: 8.55
• Walks: 3.53
• Strike Outs: 8.21

• Runs: 4.20
• Hits: 8.28
• Walks: 2.91
• Strike Outs: 7.97

Rays vs Athletics MLB Betting Trends

• Rays are 5-1 in Morton’s last 6 starts vs. a team with a winning record
• Athletics are 0-4 in their last 4 playoff games
• Under is 10-4 in the last 14 meetings in Oakland
• Rays are 2-4 SU in their last 6 games against Oakland
• The total has gone OVER in 4 of Tampa Bay’s last 6 games on the road
• Athletics are 4-1 SU in their last 5 games at home
• The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Oakland’s last 5 games this season

Expert Final Score Prediction for Rays vs Athletics

Tampa Bay Rays 3 – Oakland Athletics 4

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