Red Sox Starting Top Pitching Prospect Brayan Bello in Rubber Match vs. Rays | Betting Preview & Prediction

Today is a great day to be a Red Sox fan.

Pitcher Chris Sale will take the mound tonight for the Worcester Red Sox against the Scranton RailRaiders. This is a huge step in his rehab process – as according to Jon Morosi, Sale could return to Boston’s rotation as early as next week.

Also, here in Boston, another huge start will be taking place tonight. Top pitching prospect Brayan Bello will take the mound for the Red Sox against the Tampa Bay Rays in his MLB debut.

Bello has been dominant this season with both the Portland Sea Dogs and the WooSox, posting a 10-4 record with a 2.33 ERA. He has 114 strikeouts and has let up just 55 hits over 85 innings pitched. Bello is known for his velocity, with a fastball sitting around 96-97 MPH – and topping out at around 100.

It’ll be interesting to see how he handles the pressure. Here are the odds for tonight’s Sox/Rays game, powered by BetOnline.ag:

Odds

Moneyline: Red Sox -121/Rays +111

Runline: Red Sox -1.5 (+158)/Rays +1.5 (-178)

Total: O/U 9

Starting Pitchers

Red Sox: Brayan Bello (0-0) ERA: N/A

Rays: Corey Kluber (3-5) ERA: 3.91

Storylines, Preview, and Prediction

The WooSox are getting plenty of run in Boston lately – as Jeter Downs, Jarren Duran, and Franchy Cordero have all played significant innings for the Red Sox over the last month.

Boston is 2-3 in July and has split the first two games of their series vs. Tampa. They’re just one game ahead of the Rays in the AL East and Wild Card standings – and although it’s only July, every win counts from here on out.

With Corey Kluber on the bump for the opposition, the Sox will need to get the bats going to give Bello a chance at a win in his debut. Although Kluber is just 3-5 this year, the 2x Cy Young winner has plenty of stuff to get the job done.

Ultimately, the Red Sox get the win behind a solid performance from Bello. They take a two-game lead over the Rays heading into their matchup vs. the Yankees this weekend.

Prediction: Red Sox 7 – Rays 4

Side: Red Sox -121

Total: OVER 9

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