Rays vs. Brewers Prediction and Odds for Wednesday, August 10 (Jeffrey Springs' Road Excellence Gives Rays Value)

A pair of clubs heading in opposite directions square off this afternoon as the Tampa Bay Rays look to stay hot against the struggling Milwaukee Brewers.

Heading into the series, Tampa won six of its last eight as road underdogs and held an AL Wild Card spot. With a 7-2 record in Jeffrey Springs' last nine starts, the Rays are confident behind the lefty that's allowed more than three runs just once in 14 starts.

Meanwhile, Milwaukee fell out of the playoffs altogether after losing six of seven. Brandon Woodruff allowed three runs or less in nine consecutive starts but the Brewers are 2-3 in his last five regardless.

Can Tampa Bay pick up another win behind Springs or will Milwaukee get back on track?

Let's check out the consensus odds before we dive into this Rays vs Brewers matchup:

Rays vs Brewers Odds, Run Line and Total

Run Line:

• Rays +1.5 (-156)
• Brewers -1.5 (+130)

Moneyline:

• Rays: +135
• Brewers: -161

Total:

• 7.5 (Over -106/Under 114)

Rays vs Brewers Prediction and Pick

There's quite a few reasons to favor the Rays in this matchup. At the least, they shouldn't be +135 underdogs.

Jeffrey Springs is stellar on the road, posting a FIP (Fielding Independent Pitching) under 2.44 in four of his last five starts away from home. Max Fried ranks third among all qualified pitchers with a 2.45 FIP, so Springs is on a sensational stretch.

Milwaukee struggles against left-handed pitchers, ranking 24th in OPS against them since the All-Star break. Thus, Springs should continue to find success.

Brewers' starter Brandon Woodruff is impressive as well, but he's had a command issue of late, walking 14 batters in his last 24.1 innings. That could cause problems against a Rays lineup averaging the eighth-most walks per game on the road with the 12th-best OPS against right-handed pitchers on the road since the break.

The entire Milwaukee clubhouse feels weird after trading Josh Hader at the trade deadline. It felt like the front office was throwing up the white flag despite leading the division, and it's taking time for the locker room to refocus.

I'll trust Springs' road excellence and take the plus money on Tampa Bay. Whatever's going on in Milwaukee, the organization needs to figure it out quickly.

Pick: Rays (+135)

Follow all of Joe Summers' betting picks here.