SPORTS BETTING

Minnesota Twins at Tampa Bay Rays odds, expert picks and prediction

Skip Snow
Sportsbook Wire

The Minnesota Twins (58-76) and Tampa Bay Rays (85-50) meet Saturday at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Fla. First pitch is scheduled for 4:05 p.m ET. Let's analyze the lines around the Twins vs. Raysodds with MLB picks and predictions.

LHP Andrew Albers is the projected starting pitcher for the Twins. Albers is making his second start of the season in his third game. He has allowed 1 earned run on 5 hits and 2 walks with 6 strikeouts over 9 1/3 innings.

  • Pitched 5 1/3 scoreless innings against the Milwaukee Brewers Aug. 27 in his last outing.
  • Owns a 3.88 ERA and 1.29 WHIP in 28 career MLB games (19 starts).
  • Has clocked a 3.86 ERA over 91 IP with Triple-A St. Paul. Inked a Minor League contract in February following a three-year stint overseas.

RHP Chris Archer is the projected starting pitcher for the Rays. Archer has made three short-inning starts and one relief appearance in an injury-marred 2021 campaign. The veteran hurler has allowed 5 earned runs on 12 hits and 3 walks while fanning 16 over 10 1/3 innings.

  • Allowed 2 ER on 4 H and a walk with 6 K over 4 IP Sunday at the Baltimore Orioles.
  • Owns a 3.87 ERA and 1.25 WHIP through 216 career games (213 starts), but has a 4.69 ERA over his last 54 games.

Twins at Rays odds, lines, picks and prediction

MLB odds courtesy of Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports for a full list. Odds last updated at 8:55 a.m. ET.

  • Money line: Twins +180 (bet $100 to win $180) | Rays -230 (bet $230 to win $100)
  • Against the spread/ATS: Twins +1.5 (-112) | Rays -1.5 (-108)
  • Over/Under: 8.5 (O: -125 | U: +100)

PLAY: Free, daily sports pick'em contests.Play now!

Prediction

Twins 5, Rays 4

Money line (ML)

Tampa Bay handed Minnesota its third straight loss as it took Friday's series opener 5-3. Minnesota has scored just 4 total runs over those three losses. The Twins have averaged just 3.6 runs per game with a .639 OPS since Aug. 17.

Surging Tampa Bay is 21-6 over its last 27 games. The Rays are a robust 39-14 against teams under .500.

The Rays are tough to bet against in this spot, but their recent success has opponents' prices crossing over into value territory. Tampa Bay is not at its best against lefty pitching.

Minnesota, however, does get swung around to its best platoon numbers against the right-hander Archer. The Twins own a .748 OPS against righties. Their bullpen is also in much better shape heading into the middle game of this set.

BACK MINNESOTA (+180).

FANTASY BASEBALL: Serious about winning your league? Sign up for BaseballHQ.com to dominate the competition.Subscribe now!

Run line/Against the spread (ATS)

PASS. We'd need Minnesota at plus money (+100) for any possible play.

Over/Under (O/U)

Both bullpens have been quite good of late. Peg both as having not fully supportable numbers, and the overall pitching in this one is iffy enough to make the Over a consideration.

Add in the Twins being a more likable offense than what has been on paper of late and the Rays being too far over their skis at 5.31 RPG.

TAKE THE OVER 8.5 (-125).

For more sports betting picks and tips, visit SportsbookWire.com. Please gamble responsibly.

Follow SportsbookWire on Twitter and like us on Facebook.

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage. This information is for entertainment purposes only. We make no representations or warranties as to the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of any content.