Red Sox vs. Rays Wednesday MLB probable pitchers, odds: AL Rookie of the Year candidate Taj Bradley makes big-league debut as Tampa Bay eyes 12-0 start

Not much has gone wrong for the unbeaten Tampa Bay Rays in the first couple weeks of this MLB season, but they do now have an opening in the rotation with Zach Eflin landing on the 15-day injured list Tuesday. Perhaps no organization in the majors cranks out good pitchers like Tampa Bay, though, and touted rookie Taj Bradley will get the call to start on Wednesday against the visiting Red Sox in his big-league debut. Tampa Bay is -130 at Caesars Sportsbook.

The Rays don't usually spend much in free agency to keep their payroll among the majors' lowest, but they did hand Eflin a three-year, $40 million deal this winter. That guaranteed total topped the five-year, $35 million pact signed by Wilson Alvarez in 1997, as the biggest payout for a free agent in franchise history. Eflin has a history of knee issues, but he's on the IL this time with back tightness and could return when first eligible on April 23 (he was placed on the IL retroactively to April 8). He's 2-0 with a 3.27 ERA.

If Eflin's time on the shelf is short, then so might be Bradley's time in the majors unless he dominates. The 22-year-old right-hander is ranked as the top prospect in Tampa Bay's organization and No. 18 in the majors. Bradley was picked in the fifth round of the 2018 draft out of a Georgia high school. His fastball gets the best grade of all his pitches at 65 on a scale of 20-80.

Bradley led all minor-league starters in ERA two years ago with a 1.83 across two levels (with a 12-3 record) and then was 7-4 with a 2.57 ERA in 28 starts at Double-A and Triple-A last season. He was the American League starter in the All-Star Futures Game at Dodger Stadium. He's 1-0 with a 5.14 ERA in two starts this year at Triple-A Durham. Bradley was one of the first cuts at major-league spring camp.

Bradley was expected to debut with the Rays at some point in 2023, but not this early. He's +7500 at Caesars Sportsbook to win AL Rookie of the Year. He may not be out there long enough to earn a win Wednesday, as Bradley hasn't thrown more than 55 pitches in a start at Triple-A this year.

It's veteran lefty Chris Sale (1-0, 11.25 ERA), who is from nearby Lakeland, on the mound for the Red Sox. Sale has an ugly WHIP of 2.00 as he has allowed 11 hits and walked five in eight innings. He has a 2.82 ERA in 23 career outings (21 starts) vs. Tampa Bay.

At 11-0, the Rays are two games shy of the best start in MLB history -- both the 1987 Milwaukee Brewers and 1982 Atlanta Braves both started 13-0, but neither won the World Series. The Rays had four more homers in Tuesday's 7-2 win over Boston and have 29 dingers on the year, matching the major league record through 11 games set by the 2000 St. Louis Cardinals.

Having hit 29 homers and allowed only 20 total runs through Tuesday, the Rays had the largest differential between home runs hit and runs allowed by any team in MLB history.

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