Red Sox to Hold On To Slim AL East Title Hopes

After beating the Boston Red Sox (92-65, 80-77 RL, 70-74-13 O/U), will turn to lefty, Jon Lester to turn the trick for one more night.

The first-place Rays, who are three games up in the AL East, have reduced their magic number for winning the division title to one after beating the Baltimore Orioles 11-6 on Wednesday.

"We're still trying to play and win the division," said Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia. "Guys are still going to come out and play hard. ... But we'll be ready to go."

Lester, (15-6, 3.26 ERA), is coming off an uninspiring performance in his last start after after giving up five runs on eight hits in seven innings of a 6-3 road loss to Toronto on Saturday.

"They did a good job of hitting some good pitches. I just didn't do a good job of keeping it in control," Lester told the Red Sox's official Web site.

The Indians, who had their seven-game winning streak snapped in the BetUS Sportsbook, will turn to their own lefty in veteran Jeremy Sowers (4-8, 5.48), who is looking to win three consecutive starts for the first time in two seasons.

Sowers has gone an impressive 2-0 with a 2.65 ERA over his last three starts and limited the disappointing Detroit Tigers to just one run on five hits in six innings of Cleveland’s 6-3 home win on Saturday.

Here is a look at tonight’s key online sports wagering trends followed by my analysis and MLB online betting Free Picks:

The Indians are 4-1 in Sowers' last five starts vs. American League East.

The Indians are 3-8 in Sowers' last eleven road starts.

The Red Sox are 9-0 in Lester’s last nine home starts vs. a team with a winning record.

The Red Sox are 6-0 in Lester’s last six starts following a team loss in their previous game.

The Under is 5-1 in Sowers' last six starts vs. a team with a winning record.

The Over is 4-1-1 in Lester’s last six starts with four days of rest.

The Over is 6-1 in the last seven meetings in Boston.

The Over is 7-3-2 in the last 12 meetings.

Analysis: While Jeremy Sowers is throwing the ball very well lately, I just don’t see the Boston Red Sox losing this game. I fully expect Lester, one of my favorite pitchers in all of baseball, to dial it up a notch tonight while leading Boston to a narrow victory.

MLB Free Picks: Red Sox 5 Indians 4