The Toronto Blue Jays will be looking to bounce back from their recent disappointing performance on the road when to take on the visiting Detroit Tigers as heavy -220 betting favourites on the MLB odds on Friday night at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
Toronto lost six of the nine outings on its just concluded nine-game road trip, leaving the team 10.5 games back of the AL East-leading Tampa Bay Rays going into Friday night’s matchup at the Rogers Centre.
The Blue Jays closed out their road trip with an 8-5 loss to the Washington Nationals on Wednesday, and have now surrendered eight runs per game during a 1-3 stretch. The team’s defensive struggles have generated a steady 8-2 run for the OVER at online betting sites. That marks a worrisome reversal in fortune for the Blue Jays, who had allowed just 2.45 runs per game during a preceding 9-2 surge.
The team’s road struggles have also put their postseason hopes in jeopardy. In addition to losing sight of the top of the AL East, the Blue Jays have also lost ground in the wild card race where they have fallen behind the surging Seattle Mariners along with the New York Yankees, Oakland Athletics, and Boston Red Sox. That is reflected on the MLB futures, where Toronto has sunk to a +2200 bet to win the AL East, and to +2500 on the World Series odds.
One player the team is looking to in its bid to remain in postseason contention is Vladimir Guerrero Jr. The Blue Jays slugger has recorded at least one hit in five of his last six outings, but has otherwise experienced a power outage so far this month, hitting just two home runs and collecting just five RBI. Guerrero’s mini-slump has impacted him on the odds to earn AL MVP honours this season, where he lags behind the favourite Shohei Ohtani as a +750 bet.
While the Blue Jays try to regroup, the Tigers will be looking to extend their recent run of success on the road as they arrive in town for this weekend’s series opener as +190 underdogs. The Tigers blew an eight-run lead on the way to a 13-10 loss to the Los Angeles Angels on Thursday afternoon, a fourth straight loss to close out their six-game homestand. However, the Tigers are 6-2 in their past eight away contests, and have held Toronto to just 2.5 runs per game while winning four of their past six matchups at Rogers Centre.
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