MLB 2023 Weekly Preview - Week 8

Summary

The MLB season is more than a quarter of the way through which means we are finally getting to see which teams are possible contenders, and pretenders.

Although much of the season is left to be played, there is clearly a perception of which teams need to improve and which are on the ascendancy.

There will be nothing less than a full on effort from all teams to make the playoffs, but bad starts have them in dire straits currently.

Hitting the ball has become an issue for many teams, and even with the pitching clock adjustment, we are seeing a drastic shift of low batting averages with RISP being left on.

There are so many opportunities for players to hit their lines, but we will see how the rest of this season goes.

Making things easier on themselves, pitching staffs from teams are going to be looking to fire into trajectory.

There is nothing but great play to be had, and we will be seeing whether or not they can finally hit into form.

Let’s get into some of this week’s best matchups on Stake.com’s sportsbook!

Analysis

Tampa Bay Rays versus New York Mets - Wednesday, May 17th, 2023

The Rays are currently looking to continue on their historic early season run, and in order to do so, will need help from their pitching staff.

The bats have been on fire lately, and their ace pitcher Shane McClanahan looks to stay undefeated.

There is room for improvement, though, and they will want to keep up the pace with the rest of the AL East.

The Rays are a solid squad with all the best fundamentals you could ask for in a team, and their struggle is surrounded with keeping everyone happy.

Right now, things are flying in every way possible, so it looks to be all good.

As the season progresses, players will need to step up in the big moments and possibly deliver Tampa Bay another WS Championship.

Time will tell, but for now, the Rays are the best team in baseball.

New York is looking to cash in a great series win once they start an interleague set of matches versus the Rays this week.

However, it won’t be easy. Pete Alonso and his squad are lacking consistency like most other teams in the MLB right now, and they need to find their sweet spot which kicked them into a 100+ win season last year.

The Mets are by far one of the most talented teams in baseball, but need to put all the pieces together, which could be a great story in this series.

Prediction - New York Mets moneyline and the over on total runs scored.

Atlanta Braves versus Texas Rangers - Tuesday, May 16th, 2023

The Braves and Rangers are both loving life at the moment, and there will be a huge battle here in the interleague week.

Atlanta is looking to bounce back after a rough week in which they were giving up runs in most innings, while the Rangers also look to shake the rust off after a series with the A’s.

Both teams are currently firing on all cylinders, which makes this one a must-watch.

This series will be close and will likely prove who can move forward and make some true noise.

Prediction - Braves moneyline.