The Toronto Blue Jays and Detroit Tigers will meet once more at Comerica Park on Sunday afternoon before the All-Star break.
The hosts evened up the series in style at one win apiece on Saturday on the strength of a combined no-hitter, but come into today’s contest as the underdog in the MLB odds with Tarik Skubal making just his second start of the season.
Can Skubal help Detroit shut down Toronto’s offense again, or will the visitors take the rubber match? We’ll discuss in our Blue Jays vs Tigers MLB picks and predictions for Sunday, July 9.
Blue Jays vs Tigers odds
Blue Jays vs Tigers predictions
After the Blue Jays rolled to an easy win in the series opener, the Tigers responded with a 2-0 victory to even up the set on Saturday as three pitchers combined to no-hit Toronto. Starter Matt Manning did the bulk of the work, throwing 6 2/3 innings while allowing just three baserunners via walk, while relievers Jason Foley and Alex Lange picked up the final seven outs.
Detroit will hand the ball over to Tarik Skubal for just the second time this season after the left-hander missed 11 months following flexor tendon surgery. Skubal was limited to just four innings in his season debut on July 4 but didn’t allow a hit and recorded six strikeouts against the Athletics.
While the Jays exploded for 12 runs in the first meeting against the Tigers on Friday, their bats have been quiet of late, recording just 3.67 runs per game in the nine contests prior to this series. Toronto has also now been shut out three times in its last 11 outings.
Chris Bassitt hasn’t been at the top of his game either, posting a 6.85 ERA across his last five starts while giving up at least three earned runs in four of those outings.
I doubt that the Jays will get shut out again, but they could struggle to find their footing against an unknown commodity in Skubal, so look for the Tigers to draw first blood.
My best bet: Tigers First To Score (+145 at SIA)
Blue Jays vs Tigers same-game parlay
Tigers First To Score
Blue Jays Under 4.5 Runs
Tigers Under 4.5 Runs
Along with banking on Detroit to open the scoring, we’re going to round out today’s same-game parlay by taking the Under on 4.5 runs for both the Blue Jays and Tigers.
A major reason why I expect Toronto to struggle offensively again today is because of how poor they’ve been against left-handed pitching this season — the club’s .383 slugging percentage is the sixth-worst mark in the majors.
Meanwhile, the Tigers are averaging just 3.92 runs per game, and have scored five or more runs just five times in their last 15 outings.
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Blue Jays vs Tigers moneyline and Over/Under analysis
It’s hard to have much confidence in the Blue Jays after they were shut out and no-hit on Saturday, but I’m going to stick with the favorites and bank on a bounce-back performance in today’s ballgame.
While the southpaw Skubal could give them some trouble again, the Jays have more than enough talent on paper to drive in at least a few runs. Whit Merrifield (3 HR, 8 RBI) and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (1 HR, 7 RBI) have both been hot at the plate so far this month, so we’ll see if they can bring Toronto’s offense back to life. The odds aren’t too bad, either, as the visitors are getting -130 at most books heading into play.
With the total set at 8.5 runs, the Under is once again the clear play between these two stunted offenses. The Tigers have picked it up offensively a bit over the last month, scoring 131 runs, tied for 12th in the majors, but the Blue Jays have really trailed off with just 111 runs over that span (22nd).
The Under is also 21-5 in the last 26 meetings between the clubs and 7-2 in their last nine meetings in Detroit.
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Trend to know
The Under is 5-1 in Toronto’s last six games vs a left-handed starter. Find more MLB betting trends for Blue Jays vs. Tigers
Blue Jays vs Tigers game info
| Location: | Comerica Park, Detroit, MI |
| Date: | Sunday, July 9, 2023 |
| First pitch: | 1:40 p.m. ET |
| TV: | Sportsnet, BSDET |
Starting pitchers
Chris Bassitt (8-5, 4.09 ERA): After a strong month of May, Bassitt has come crashing back down to earth since the middle of June. The right-hander gave up three earned runs over six innings in his last start against the White Sox on July 4 and has held opponents to two runs or fewer just three times in his last eight outings.
Tarik Skubal (0-0, 0.00 ERA): Skubal was obviously limited in his first start in nearly a year, throwing just 57 pitches over four innings, but he was nearly perfect in that brief outing. The left-hander posted a 3.52 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP through 21 starts and 117 2/3 innings last season.
