Tampa Bay Rays vs. Oakland Athletics MLB Betting Preview | April 7

The Tampa Bay Rays (6-0) are looking for continued production from a hitter when they match up against the Oakland Athletics (2-4) on Friday at 6:40 PM ET at Tropicana Field. Luke Raley is currently on a two-game home run streak for the favored Rays (-221) in the matchup with the underdog Athletics (+184). Tampa Bay has Zach Eflin starting things off, and Oakland will counter with Ken Waldichuk.

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Game Info, Betting Lines for Rays vs. Athletics

• Game Day: Friday, April 7, 2023
• Game Time: 6:40 PM ET
• Location: St. Petersburg, Florida
• Stadium: Tropicana Field

How Do I Watch the Rays vs. the Athletics?

• TV Channel: BSSUN

Rays Stats & Trends

Rays Batting

• The Rays rank second-best in MLB play with 13 total home runs.
• Tampa Bay ranks fifth in the majors with a .284 batting average.
• The Rays’ .348 on-base percentage ranks seventh-best in baseball.
• Tampa Bay’s batters strike out 7.3 times per game, the fifth-fewest strikeouts in MLB.
• The Rays have hit four homers at home this season (1.3 per game).
• Tampa Bay is slugging .495 with 4.3 extra-base hits per game in home contests.
• The club is batting .278 with 27 hits (9.0 per game) at home this season.

Rays Key Batters

• Wander Franco leads Tampa Bay with 10 hits and an OBP of .481, plus a team-best slugging percentage of .792.
• Among all qualified hitters in MLB, Franco ranks 13th in batting average, 18th in on-base percentage, and 11th in slugging.
• Yandy Diaz is batting .333 with a double, two home runs and four walks.
• Diaz’s batting average ranks 45th among qualified players, his on-base percentage 26th, and his slugging percentage 18th.
• Diaz heads into this matchup looking to extend his two-game hit streak. In his last five games he is batting .333 with a double, two home runs, four walks and six RBI.
• Randy Arozarena has collected eight base hits, an OBP of .462 and a slugging percentage of .636 this season.
• Arozarena heads into this game with six games in a row with at least one hit. During his last six games he is batting .364 with three doubles, a home run, two walks and six RBI.
• Jose Siri has been key for Tampa Bay with six hits, an OBP of .350 plus a slugging percentage of .778.
• Siri takes a five-game hitting streak into this matchup. In his last five games he is hitting .333 with two doubles, two home runs, a walk and eight RBI.

Athletics Stats & Trends

Athletics Batting

• The Athletics rank 17th in Major League Baseball with six home runs.
• Oakland has a team batting average of just .201 this season, which ranks 28th among MLB teams.
• The Athletics have an OBP of just .283 this season, which ranks 26th in MLB.
• Oakland ranks 13th in MLB in strikeouts per game with an average of 8.7 Ks per contest.

Athletics Key Batters

• Tony Kemp has racked up a team-high .273 slugging percentage.
• Including all qualified hitters, Kemp ranks 124th in batting average, while his on-base percentage ranks 71st and he is 153rd in slugging.
• Esteury Ruiz has three doubles and three walks while hitting .211.
• Including all qualifying players, Ruiz ranks 138th in batting average, 87th in on-base percentage and 120th in slugging percentage.
• Jesus Aguilar has accumulated a team-best OBP (.381) and slugging percentage (.500).
• Ramon Laureano’s five hits and .591 slugging percentage both lead his team.

Rays vs. Athletics Probable Pitchers

Rays vs. Athletics Injury Updates

• Rays: Tyler Glasnow: 15 Day IL (Oblique), Shane Baz: 15 Day IL (Elbow), Shawn Armstrong: 15 Day IL (Neck), Andrew Kittredge: 60 Day IL (Elbow)
• Athletics: Manny Piña: 10 Day IL (Wrist), Drew Rucinski: 15 Day IL (Undisclosed), Freddy Tarnok: 15 Day IL (Undisclosed), Paul Blackburn: 15 Day IL (Finger), Kirby Snead: 60 Day IL (Shoulder)