Odds for Baseball Betting – Minnesota Twins vs. Boston Red Sox

After a sweep of the Chicago White Sox on the road, the Minnesota Twins travel to Boston looking for their second consecutive sweep of the season.

Matching up against the Red Sox for a three-game series, the action begins tonight at 7:10 PM ET at Fenway Park.

The odds for baseball betting in the Sportsbook go with Boston as the favorite to win tonight’s game at home, with the run total set at 9.5 runs.

Minnesota Twins (11-18) vs. Boston Red Sox (14-17)

Friday, May 6 at 7:10 PM ET

Fenway Park, Boston, Massachusetts

TV: FSNO, NESN

Odds for Baseball Betting: Minnesota +1.5, Boston -1.5, Run Total: 9.5 runs

The Twins get the chance to turn around their recent stroke of bad luck and losses at Fenway tonight. After solid play in Chicago, the Twins hope for more of the same, relying on strong starting pitching. Minnesota has lost its last seven outings at Fenway, being outscored by the Red Sox 51-18 over that stretch.

And without star-power batter Jim Thome tonight, the runs may again be hard to come by. Fielder Jason Kubel has picked up some slack though, as he hit .350 with two RBIs against the White Sox last series.

But the Twins will go up against the knuckleball of Tim Wakefield, getting only his second start of the season. In his first outing, Wakefield gave up three hits in just over five innings of play to Seattle. In his 24 starts against the Twins, the righty has been consistent, going 13-6.

But the Red Sox dropped their last two games at home to the Los Angeles Angels and need to secure wins at home. The leading scorer for Boston has been Big Papi, a.k.a. David Ortiz, who has batted .361 in his last nine games. Against the Twins scheduled starter tonight, Scott Baker, Ortiz has gotten hits twice in six at-bats, including one homer.

Baker started the season off a bit rusty, allowing eight runs in his first two starts, but has solidified his pitches since. In his last three outings, he has allowed only three runs in over 20 innings pitched.

However, against Boston, the right-hander has received two losses and one no-decision in his starts at Fenway, with an ERA of 4.58.

MLB Pitching Matchup:

S. Baker (1-2, ERA 3.16) vs. T. Wakefield (0-0, ERA 4.08)

Despite Baker’s solid pitching as of late, the best MLB bet is on the Red Sox at home behind the arm of Wakefield. Although Wakefield has yet to garner much success in 2011, he has the experience advantage and his team knows him well.

The best Friday night pick is with the Boston Red Sox to take the first game of the series tonight over the Minnesota Twins.

Odds for Baseball Betting Pick – Take the Boston Red Sox -1.5!