Arizona Diamondbacks vs Tampa Bay Rays Betting Pick & Prediction 8/16/24

At 6:50 PM ET, the Diamondbacks and Rays square off in an interleague matchup. This one is being played at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, and the Rays are the slight favorite on the money line (-109).

Arizona is 69-53 overall and they have won six straight, putting them 2nd in the NL West. Tampa Bay comes in with a record of 59-61, and they will be sending Ryan Pepiot to the mound vs. a Diamondbacks club that has Ryne Nelson starting.

ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS VS TAMPA BAY RAYS BETTING PICK

The Pick: Arizona Diamondbacks Moneyline -110

This game will be played at Tropicana Field at 6:50 ET on Friday, August 16th.

HOW TO BET THE DIAMONDBACKS VS RAYS:

• We have the Diamondbacks winning by a score of 6 to 5
• However, if you’re looking for a run line pick, we like the Rays to cover
• As for an over/under pick, we have this game finishing with 11 runs and like the over

Diamondbacks Records & Stats

Eugenio Suarez had a big game at the plate for the Diamondbacks in their most recent game vs. the Rockies, going 3/4 with a homer and five RBIs. The Diamondbacks really broke things open with a four-run 1st inning and added another four runs in the 6th to close things out. Arizona was the heavy favorite at -214 going into the game.

Jordan Montgomery started for the Diamondbacks, going six innings and giving up three runs on five hits. He only had three strikeouts in the outing and got the win.

Arizona is on a six-game winning streak, and they are two games behind the Dodgers for the NL West lead. The Diamondbacks are 69-53 overall and have gone 22-14 against other teams in the NL West. Arizona closed out their series vs. the Rockies with three straight wins.

As the road team today, the Diamondbacks are 32-27 this season compared to 37-26 at home. Arizona has won four straight games as the road favorite, and they are 8-6 in these situations this year. They have also won six straight series on the road and have an overall series record of 22-13-4, including winning nine straight series.

When betting the run line on the Diamondbacks, it’s important to note that they have a winning run line record on the road at 34-25. They have covered the run line in two straight road games and have a run line record of 39-24 when they are the underdog.

The Diamondbacks are on the road against the Rays today, and the over/under line is set at 8 runs. Arizona games have averaged 9.9 runs per game this season, and their over/under record is 66-50. When the line is set at 8 runs, their record is 10-4-2. Overall, 73% of their games have had higher over/under lines than 8 runs.

Ryne Nelson is looking to build off his last outing, where he turned in a solid performance against the Phillies. In that August 9th start, he went 7 1/3 innings, giving up just two earned runs on three hits. Nelson finished with a no-decision in the outing. Looking back further, he has made eight quality starts this year and has a record of 8-6. Nelson’s ERA for the season is 4.51, along with a WHIP of 1.32. For the year, he has allowed 11 home runs and is averaging 7.27 strikeouts per nine innings.

Arizona comes into today’s game as the top-scoring team in the league, averaging 5.3 runs per game. This is a team that has been even better at home, where they are averaging 5.5 runs per contest. As a team, they are batting .261, which is the 2nd best mark in the MLB right now.

Arizona’s offense is led by Ketel Marte, who is hitting .298 for the season and has gone deep 30 times, which is the best mark on the team and 7th best in the league. Marte and Christian Walker have been the team’s top run producers this season, with Marte driving in 81 runs and Walker at 71. Jake McCarthy has been swinging a hot bat of late, going 14/30 in his last seven games with three homers.

Rays Records & Stats

The Rays will be looking to get back on track after closing out their series vs. the Astros with a 2-1 loss. Tampa Bay was the +106 underdog at home going into the game. Things started off well for the Rays, as they got on the board with a run in the 1st inning but gave up the lead right away as the Astros scored in the top of the 2nd.

Zack Littell put together a good start for the Rays, going five innings and giving up just one earned run while striking out three. However, the Rays couldn’t close things out, and Garrett Cleavinger took the loss out of the bullpen. Tampa Bay also wasted a big game from Wander Franco, who went 3 for 4 with a double and a run scored.

The Rays are 59-61 overall, putting them 4th in the AL East, 12 games behind the Orioles for the division lead. Tampa Bay lost the final game of their series vs. the Astros and have dropped three straight games. So far, they are 17-23 in AL East matchups.

At home, the Rays are 31-34 this year, and they are two games above .500 at 28-27 on the road. This season, the Rays are just 9-16 as the home underdog. Tampa Bay’s overall series record is 20-15-4, and they have dropped three straight series.

When the Rays win, they win big, with an average run margin of 2.8 runs. That’s a big reason why they are 38-24 against the run line as underdogs. Their overall run line record is .500 at 60-60, but they have been much better on the road at 34-21. Their average run margin is -.5 runs per game, and they are 26-39 against the run line at home.

The Rays have been involved in a high-scoring games this season, as their games have averaged 8.2 runs per game. Their over/under record is 54-61 on the season, and when the line is set at 8 runs, they are 13-18-1. Their games have had an average line of 8 runs per game, and 43 of their games have had lines set over 8 runs. Their games have gone under the line in 45 games, and they are currently on a 4-game under streak.

Ryan Pepiot gets the start for the Rays today vs. the Diamondbacks and is coming off a great outing. In his most recent start, Pepiot went 6 innings and didn’t give up a run. He only allowed two hits in the outing. Looking back over his last three starts, Pepiot has given up a total of three earned runs. The right-hander’s record for the season is 6-5, and he has an ERA of 3.92. Opponents are batting .195 off Pepiot this season. Out of his 17 starts, he has six quality starts and is averaging 9.69 strikeouts per nine innings.

Heading into today’s game, the Rays are one of the worst offensive teams in the league, averaging just 3.9 runs per game. They have been even worse at home, averaging just 3.5 runs per contest. As a team, they are batting just .231, which is 19th in the MLB, and their team on-base percentage of .308 is also below average. Tampa Bay does have a few hitters with good home run numbers, as Christopher Morel and Jose Siri have 20 and 14 homers, respectively, but both have struggled in terms of batting average.

Yandy Diaz has been the team’s most consistent hitter this season, batting .270 with 10 homers. He is also 2nd on the team in RBIs. Over his last seven games, Jose Caballero has gone 6/16, while Brandon Lowe has gone just 3/24 in his last six games. Lowe has one homer and three RBIs in that stretch.