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Betting lines and odds for Angels vs. Rays on Thursday

Los Angeles Angels starting pitcher Andrew Heaney throws against the Houston Astros during the first inning of a baseball game Friday, April 23, 2021, in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

The Angels, after squandering five shutout innings by Shoehei Ohtani on Wednesday in a 3-1 loss, try to salvage the last game of a four-game series Thursday against the Tampa Bay Rays at 6:38 p.m. in Anaheim.

Things look better for the Angels as they’re around -135 favorites with Andrew Heaney facing Tampa Bay’s Collin McHugh. Heaney (1-2, 5.25 ERA, 1.12 WHIP) was off to a decent start this season after getting rocked in his first game by the White Sox. In his last appearance, he had three strong outings before getting knocked around by the Mariners (allowing four runs in 3 1/ 3 innings).

However, Heaney has looked like Cy Young compared with McHugh (0-1, 10.12 ERA, 2.44 WHIP), who made four relief appearances in April before going on the injured list and now is making his first start in nearly two years (May 7, 2019).

The potential big edge for the home team is several Angels players faced McHugh when he was with the Astros. Mike Trout is 6-for-13 (.462) against McHugh with two homers and four RBIs. Jose Iglesias is 4-for-5 (.800).

Angels line for 5/6/2021
Angels line for 5/6/2021 (VSiN)

The over/under is set at eight runs, with several Las Vegas shading it to the over at -115, which seems appropriate with neither pitcher likely to totally shut down their opponent.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.