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• Seattle Mariners vs. Tampa Bay Rays
• Saturday, July 1 at 10PM ET
• T-Mobile Park in Seattle, Washington
On one side of things, the Tampa Bay Rays have been a huge surprise in the MLB this season. However, the same can’t be said for the Seattle Mariners, as they’re currently three games under .500. This is not what anyone expected. This week, these two teams will face off in the Pacific Northwest in what should be a fun series. Both teams are hoping to make a splash ahead of the All-Star Break. With that said, the Rays should take down the Mariners in a key Saturday contest.
Not only are the Tampa Bay Rays in the middle of a tremendous year, but they’re also in the World Series conversation. No other team out there has seen their MLB betting odds go up more than the Rays this year. Both on offense and with their starting rotation, the Rays have been tough to match, especially in the AL. Now, they’re going to want to enter the All-Star break with confidence. They can do just that with some strong games vs. Seattle.
| Rays vs. Mariners odds |  |  |  |  |
| Rays to win | -115 | -115 | -115 | -115 |
| Mariners to win | +125 | +125 | +125 | +125 |
| Over to hit | -110 | -110 | -110 | -110 |
| Under to hit | -110 | -110 | -110 | -110 |
The Mariners are in desperate need of some strong showings, especially after they looked rough against the Washington Nationals earlier in the week. On Wednesday, the Mariners dropped another showdown to Washington, with the offense failing to do much of anything. The loss has Mariners fans voicing their displeasure all over social media. Straight up, they’ve had enough of the struggles.
According to the best-rated sportsbooks, which includes the reliable Bovada review, the Rays hold -115 MLB betting odds to record a win at T-Mobile Park on Saturday. The Mariners will look to defend their home-field advantage, but they’ve been set at +125. From our chair, it could end up being a long day for the Mariners and their fans. With that said, we’re going with the Rays as our pick to come out on top.
Dress like Yandy. Pose like Randy. Vote like crazy.
Do it for the culture: https://t.co/DSSONLPnBG pic.twitter.com/uBeHg26mpL
— Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) June 28, 2023
The under should hit between the Mariners and Rays on Saturday
While we think that Tampa Bay can put up some strong offensive numbers in this one, the under should hit between the Mariners and Rays on Saturday. Yes, TB is a fantastic team, but the Seattle offense has looked terrible of late and their lineup isn’t instilling fear in anyone. It’s been a down year for all of their sluggers, including Julio Rodriguez, Ty France and Cal Raleigh, which has been a bummer.
In a loss on Wednesday, the Mariners only scored one run. In their last four losses, they’ve been held to four runs or less. This simply isn’t going to cut it. With the Rays having such a strong rotation too, Seattle could struggle throughout the entire series and not just on Saturday. Manager Scott Servais wants to see his guys answer the call, but Raleigh himself has admitted this team isn’t looking good at all.
From #Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh, "We're not a good baseball team right now." pic.twitter.com/igyiCZOb1P
— Chris Egan King-5 TV (@ChrisEgan5) June 28, 2023
“It’s kind of like what it’s been all year,” Raleigh said after a recent loss on the team’s issues. “We get into those key moments, we get a guy on the ropes and then, you know, we let him off with one pitch and then he kind of gets rolling, next guy gets a strikeout, and then you know, the checked swing obviously, wasn’t great, but you know, we’re just not putting together good at-bats right now. We’ve got to change.”
On Saturday, the Mariners will start George Kirby, who has a 3.26 ERA this year. We think Kirby will be able to keep the Rays’ hitters in check. Tampa Bay hasn’t announced its starter yet, but with the way the Mariners have been hitting, we think whoever takes the bump won’t have any issues. The MLB betting odds for the over/under have been set at -110, with seven runs being listed. We’re going with the under here.
The Rays fanbase is dreaming of a World Series run in 2023
With the way they’ve been playing, the Rays fanbase is dreaming of a World Series run in 2023. The Rays have never won the Fall Classic, but they’ve come close in recent seasons. People all over Florida are hoping that this can be the year where the AL East side is able to get it done. Right now, the Rays hold the No. 2 World Series betting odds behind the Atlanta Braves, who are also in the middle of an unreal season. The Braves have what it takes to get the job done too.
With the Rays, though, they’ve been surprising a lot of people since the start of the campaign. A lot of folks assumed the Yankees would run away with the division title, but the Rays have been the class of the AL East thus far. Should Tampa Bay continue to play at this level, then there’s no reason they won’t be able to make a lot of noise in the postseason. With their +450 odds to win the World Series, it sure looks like they have a great chance of making some magic happen.
