The Toronto Blue Jays have a prime opportunity to avoid a tendency to play down to the competition as they come out of the all-star break. The Blue Jays are -230 home favorites and the Texas Rangers are +195 underdogs with a 10.0-run total on the MLB odds for Friday at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com (how the moneyline works).

The Blue Jays are 12-8 in their last 20 home games as a favorite when they are deeper than -150 in minus money, with the OVER hitting 12 times at betting sites. They are also 9-7 in their last 16 games as a home favorite, with an even 8-8 OVER/UNDER split. The Rangers are 7-13 in their last 20 away games as an underdog of +150 or more, with the OVER hitting 13 times. The Rangers are also 4-16 over their last 20 away games.

The Rangers have a 35-55 record. Texas is 24th both in run scoring (4.10 per game) and OPS (.687). Texas is 22nd in overall earned-run average (4.45), and 20th in relief ERA (4.47). The Blue Jays have a 45-42 record. Toronto is MLB’s third-highest scoring team at 5.10 runs per game, and also ranks second in OPS (.776). On the mound, Toronto is 12th in overall ERA (3.99), and is also 13th in relief ERA (3.97).

Lefthander Robbie Ray (7-4, 3.13 ERA, 11.6 strikeouts per nine innings) will start for the Blue Jays on Friday opposite Rangers righthander Jordan Lyles (5-5, 4.86 ERA, 7.1 SO/9). Ray, who has not faced Texas since joining Toronto, has helped his teams go 8-3 over his last 11 home-favorite starts, with three of the last four finishing UNDER. Lyles’ teams are 4-9 in his last 13 away-underdog starts, with the total finishing UNDER 13 times. He has a 6.08 ERA in 13.1 career innings against Toronto.

Lefthander Hyun Jin Ryu (8-5, 3.56 ERA, 7.4 SO/9) will start on Saturday, while the Rangers’ starter is lefthander Kolby Allard (2-6, 3.69 ERA, 8.7 SO/9). Ryu, who has faced Texas just once in his career, has helped his teams go 14-6 over his last 20 home-favorite starts, with the OVER hitting 14 times. The Rangers are 4-6 in Allard’s last 10 starts when they were underdogs on the road, with the total going UNDER five times with one push. Both pitchers will be making their second career start against Texas and Toronto, respectively.

Lefthander Steven Matz (7-4, 4.72 ERA, 9.7 SO/9) will start in Sunday’s game opposite righthander Mike Foltynewicz (2-8, 5.11 ERA, 6.5 SO/9). Matz is making his first start in 12 days as he attempts to come out of a slump where he has 6.48 ERA in his last four starts. Matz’s teams are 1-9 over his last 10 starts at home with the total going UNDER six times. Foltyniewicz has a 4.67 ERA in 27 career innings against the Blue Jays and his teams are 2-5 in his last seven starts on the road with the OVER hitting five times.

The Blue Jays’ next series is a three-game home set against the Boston Red Sox that begins on Monday.