Red Sox vs Giants: Game 1 prediction, odds, injuries and picks

The Boston Red Sox take on the San Francisco Giants on Friday for the first of three games set to take place at Oracle Park.

Boston finds itself in fourth place in the AL East, with a 39-37 record, while San Francisco is second in the NL West, with a 42-33 record.

Let's take a look at the odds for this fixture and how the action might play out on the diamond.

Red Sox vs Giants prediction

Taking the mound for the visitors is righty Hunter Dobbins, who has been solid this year. At the moment, Dobbins is pitching with a 4-1 record, along with a 3.74 ERA and 42 strikeouts.

Hunter Dobbins in action against the New York Yankees - Source: Getty

At the plate, the likes of Jarren Duran, Carlos Narvaez, Ceddanne Rafaela and Trevor Story are players to keep an eye on.

For the hosts, it is Hayden Birdsong who makes his latest start. On paper, Birdsong has been marginally better than his counterpart, boasting a 3-1 record, along with a 2.79 ERA and 51 strikeouts.

Offensively, Jung Hoo Lee, Heliot Ramos, Wilmer Flores and Rafael Devers are the main men for the Giants.

Having been the more consistent team over the course of the season, and the pitching matchup also leaning slightly in the hosts' favor, San Francisco should be able to register an important win on Friday.

Prediction: Boston Red Sox 4, San Francisco Giants 5

Odds

Money Line: Boston Red Sox +107, San Francisco Giants -127

Run Line: Red Sox +1.5 (-196), San Francisco -1.5 (+146)

Total Runs: Over 6.5 (-192), Under 6.5 (+143)

Injury report

Red Sox injuries:

Alex Bregman: 10-day IL (Quad)
Wilyer Abreu: 10-day IL (Oblique)
Nick Burdi: 15-day IL (Knee)
Justin Slaten: 15-day IL (Shoulder)
Jordan Hicks: 15-day IL (Toe)
Liam Hendriks: 15-day IL (Hip)
Tanner Houck: 15-day IL (Flexor)
Triston Casas: 60-day IL (Knee)
Masataka Yoshida: 60-day IL (Shoulder)
Josh Winckowski: 60-day IL (Elbow)
Kutter Crawford: 60-day IL (Knee)
Patrick Sandoval: 60-day IL (Elbow)
Chris Murphy: 60-day IL (Elbow)

San Francisco injuries:

Matt Chapman: 10-day IL (Hand)
Jerar Encarnación: 10-day IL (Oblique)
Tom Murphy: 60-day IL (Back)

Expert picks

The Giants have been much the better side this season, and having added one of the Red Sox's best players in Rafael Devers to their roster only a few days ago, the difference in quality between the two teams should pay dividends.

Money Line: San Francisco Giants -127

Run Line: Red Sox +1.5 (-192)

Total Runs: Over 6.5 (-192)

About the author

Raghav Mehta is a baseball journalist at Sportskeeda awaiting results for a Bachelor's in Journalism from Delhi University. He enjoys highlighting the key battles between players at different stages of the game and analyzing the decisive moments upon which they hinge.

One of Raghav's favorite moments, which underscores this, was the Shohei Ohtani vs. Mike Trout clash in the 2023 WBC, where two of baseball's best players faced off against each other in the 9th inning. With the score 3-2 to Japan, Shohei eventually got the strikeout, which was absolute cinema.

Raghav is a Baltimore Orioles fan and is enjoying watching such an exciting young team compete at the top in a very competitive division.

Raghav has loved watching sports for as long as he can remember and realized he was pretty decent at writing his thoughts down at around the age of 14. Combining the two meant he had something he would enjoy doing every day, and he had identified that well before going to college.

Aside from work, Raghav enjoys playing sports, working out and watching movies.

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Edited by Ribin Peter

Red Sox vs Giants: Game 1 prediction, odds, injuries and picks - June 20, 2025