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MLB betting preview (April 9): Blue Jays vs. Red Sox predictions
Toronto Blue Jays outfielder George Springer (4) singled to left field to drive in a run against the Boston Red Sox in the third inning at Fenway Park.
Photo credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images
Greg Warren
Apr 9, 2025, 11:19 EDT
The Toronto Blue Jays will be looking for a third-straight win when they continue their four-game series with the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park on Wednesday night.
Toronto has taken the first two games of this series by scores of 6-1 and 6-2 after suffering a three-game sweep at the hands of the New York Mets. This series will conclude on Thursday afternoon before Toronto travels to Baltimore for the final leg of its 10-game road trip.
Boston’s bats have gone cold after a five-game winning streak that included a three-game sweep of the St. Louis Cardinals, amassing 36 runs in the series.
Let’s dive into the game odds for Wednesday’s battle between the Blue Jays and Red Sox courtesy of bet365.

Blue Jays vs. Red Sox odds

Blue Jays moneyline odds
+110
Red Sox moneyline odds
-130
Runline odds
Red Sox -1.5 (+165), Blue Jays +1.5 (-200)
Game total
Over 8.5 runs (+100), Under 8.5 (-120)
Date/Time
April 9, 6:45 p.m. ET

About the Blue Jays (7-5 SU, 9-3 ATS, 3-9 o/u)

The Blue Jays received another quality outing from their starting pitching staff on Tuesday, as Easton Lucas held the Red Sox scoreless on three hits while striking out eight over 5 1/3 innings of work. Toronto’s starting pitchers have been outstanding to begin the new campaign, compiling a 6-3 record with a 2.85 ERA while holding the opposition to a .209 batting average. Only four teams—the Kansas City Royals, Tampa Bay Rays, Mets, and Cincinnati Reds—have a lower starting pitcher ERA than the Blue Jays to this point in the season.
Offensively, veteran outfielder George Springer continues to carry the club after another multi-hit effort on Tuesday. He bashed his second home run of the season to raise his OPS to 1.254 through 12 games, and he now has seven multi-hit games.
Bo Bichette also did some damage Tuesday, compiling three hits and three RBIs. He boasts a solid .314/.375/.392 slash line through 12 contests.

About the Red Sox (6-6, 7-5 ATS, 4-7-1 o/u)

The Red Sox haven’t performed well in the frosty conditions at Fenway Park over the last two days. Tuesday’s 1.6 C game-time temperature was the third coldest first pitch temperature ever recorded at Fenway Park, according to the Red Sox PR staff, which cited 1.1 C as the coldest instance. Despite the frigid conditions, Red Sox players aren’t using it as an excuse, especially against a Toronto team that has the luxury of playing its home games in a retractable dome. Forecasts are projecting slightly warmer temperatures on Wednesday night (more on that below), but players will still likely be wearing their balaclavas in an attempt to stay warm.
Red Sox players also had the distraction of their new Netflix documentary series dropping on Tuesday. Many players and coaches were fielding questions from the media about the eight-part docuseries, including outfielder Jarren Duran, who spoke pregame about his serious mental health struggles. With the Netflix debut now in the rearview mirror, the team should be more focused on baseball Wednesday.

Probable starting pitchers

Toronto: RHP Kevin Gausman (1-1, 3.97 ERA, 3.18 K/9)
Gausman, who gained 20 lbs of muscle this offseason in preparation for this season, has been solid in his previous starts, holding the Mets to three runs last time out and the Orioles to two runs in his first start.
Both of those teams boast potent lineups, and there will be no reprieve on Wednesday against Boston’s big bats, although the Red Sox have struggled at the plate in this series. Gausman’s fastball is averaging just shy of 95 mph, nearly one mph more than last season, which is making his splitter much more effective. Opposing batters are hitting just .071 off his splitter, although it’s a very small sample size at this point. Bettors should also note Gausman’s strikeouts are way down, as he failed to punch out a single batter in 5 1/3 innings last time out against the Mets. He has just four on the season, but again, it’s a small sample size.
Boston: RHP Tanner Houck (0-1, 6.52 ERA, 7.45 K/9)
After being named a first-time All-Star last year, the pressure is on Houck to take another step forward in 2025. His first two starts have been mediocre at best, as the Orioles touched him up for three runs over four innings, and the Texas Rangers recorded four runs off him over 5 2/3 innings.
Those are two impressive lineups, though, and two very tough road starts for any pitcher. Opposing batters have a 65.5 percent hard-hit rate against him this season, which ranks in the bottom four percent of MLB, although it’s obviously a very small sample size. Houck pitched very well against Toronto last season, recording a 2.08 ERA while holding Toronto to a .188 batting average across three starts.

Notable injuries

Boston is missing several key pitchers due to injury right now, including Kutter Crawford (knee), Liam Hendriks (elbow), Lucas Giolito (hamstring), and Brayan Bello (shoulder). Designated hitter Masataka Yoshida (shoulder) and catcher Connor Wong (finger) are also on the shelf.
As for the Blue Jays, outfielder Daulton Varsho (shoulder) and pitchers Ryan Burr (shoulder), Erik Swanson (forearm), and Max Scherzer (thumb) are all on the injured list.

Weather

It’s going to be another cold night in Boston with temperatures around 6 C expected by first pitch and then gradually falling throughout the evening. Skies will be clear, and winds will be light at around 10 mph blowing out to right field.

Blue Jays vs. Red Sox betting trends

  • The under is 9-0 in Toronto’s last nine games.
  • The under is 7-1 in the past eight meetings between these teams.
  • The Red Sox have hit the first five innings team total under in five of their last six games.

Blue Jays vs. Red Sox player prop trends

  • Most online sportsbooks have Gausman’s strikeout total set at 5.5, a mark he’s failed to hit in both of his previous starts this season. In fact, he’s only cleared that mark in six of his last 20 (30 percent) starts dating back to last season. If you like him to record under 5.5 strikeouts, you’ll find odds around -125.
  • Trevor Story will take a five-game hitting streak into action Wednesday, and he has recorded at least one hit in 8 of his 11 games this season. He’s around -185 to get a hit in this spot.
  • Springer has been a good bet in the hits + runs + RBIs betting market, clearing his line of 1.5 in seven of his last eight games. He has around -115 odds to beat that number again.

Blue Jays vs. Red Sox predictions

  • Game total under 8.5 runs scored: -120 for one unit (best odds at bet365). Another chilly night at Fenway should continue to make it difficult on hitters and give pitchers a slight edge for the third straight time in this series. Both of the previous games in this series went under their posted totals, and we have two solid starting pitchers on the mound Wednesday in Gausman and Houck. Additionally, the under has cashed in Toronto’s last nine games overall and in seven of the past eight meetings between these teams. I believe this line should be at 7.5 or 8, given the expected chilly game conditions and the exceptional starting pitching matchup.
  • Given Boston’s cold bats in this series, expect the Red Sox to do everything they can to manufacture runs when possible. I’m going to play a half unit on Duran (+270 @ FanDuel) to steal a base in this matchup against Gausman, who is one of the worst pitchers in the league at holding runners on and limiting stolen bases. Base stealers were successful on 18 of their 20 attempts (90 percent success rate) stealing second off Gausman last year. The Blue Jays hurler had a minus-8 net bases prevented mark last season, according to Baseball Savant, which ranked amongst the worst qualified pitchers in the league. Additionally, Duran, who already has three stolen bases on three attempts this season, boasts a .368 average with a 1.157 OPS in 19 career at-bats against Gausman, so he should find himself running the basepaths at least once early in this contest.
  • If you’re thinking about backing the red-hot Springer in the hits, total bases, or hits + runs + RBIs betting markets, you might want to proceed with caution, as he’s 0-for-12 in his career with five strikeouts against Houck.

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