Analyst Backs Under 8.5 Runs in Braves-Red Sox Opener as Strider, Suarez Start

1 articles · Updated · Fox News · May 26

An under 8.5 total is the recommended play for Tuesday’s Braves-Red Sox series opener, with the matchup centered on Atlanta’s Spencer Strider against Boston’s Ranger Suarez.
Strider has returned in strong form at 2-0 with a 3.00 ERA and 27 strikeouts in 21 innings, and he held Boston to one earned run over 5.1 innings earlier this season.
Suarez has been even steadier overall, posting a 2.40 ERA and 1.01 WHIP while limiting damage outside a rough three-game stretch; Braves hitters own a .239 average against him.
Recent offense also supports a lower-scoring outlook: Atlanta has scored one run total in its last two losses, while Boston ranks last in MLB in runs scored despite a roughly league-average .240 team average.
The game pits a 36-18 Braves club that is 19-8 on the road against a Red Sox team that is eight games under .500 and just 8-17 at home.

How will Spencer Strider's reinvented post-surgery pitching style fare in his second career start at Fenway?

With their bullpen taxed and offense slumping, are the powerhouse Braves vulnerable to an upset in Boston?