The Brewers head into Sunday's interleague matchup vs. the Guardians looking to extend their four-game winning streak. They are 1st in the NL Central with a record of 71-52. Cleveland is 1st in the AL Central and has an overall record of 72-51.
First pitch from American Family Field in Milwaukee is set for 2:10 PM ET. BSGL will be televising this one, and the Brewers are the slight favorite on the money line at -122. The over/under line is sitting at 8.5 runs. Ben Lively is starting for the Guardians, while Colin Rea is on the mound for the Brewers.
Cleveland vs. Milwaukee Matchup At A Glance
- Teams: Guardians at Brewers
- Where: American Family Field Milwaukee
- Date: Sunday, August 18th
- Betting Odds MIL -122 | CLE +104 O/U 8.5
Guardians vs Brewers Last Game Recap
It was a low-scoring game in the most recent game of this Brewers vs Guardians series. Milwaukee went into the matchup as slight favorites at -125 and squeaked out a 2-1 win. The Brewers offense only had four hits in the game but benefited from a good outing from Freddy Peralta, who went six innings and gave up just one hit and one earned run.
Cleveland's lone run came in the 4th inning, and they finished the game with just four hits and seven strikeouts. Tanner Bibee got the start for the Guardians, going five innings and giving up three hits and one earned run.
Devin Williams closed things out for the Brewers, getting the save. William Contreras also had a good game for Milwaukee, going 1/3 with a home run.
Guardians Preview
With an overall record of 72-51, the Guardians lead the AL Central by 2 games over the Twins. They have gone 38-20 at home and 34-31 on the road this season. Cleveland's run line record is 61-62, and they have a +3.3 run margin in wins and a -3.1 margin in losses.
For games with an over/under line of 8.5 runs, the Guardians have a 17-15 record this season. The average total line for their games is 8 runs, and their overall over/under record is 58-56.
Right-hander Ben Lively gets the start for the Guardians today as he faces the Brewers on the road. Lively has made 21 starts this season and has a record of 10-7 with a 3.71 ERA. In his 21 appearances, he has turned in seven quality starts. Lively's ERA at home is 3.63, compared to 4.13 on the road. Most recently, he finished with a no-decision against the Cubs, giving up three earned runs in 3 2/3 innings of work. Before that outing, he had won two straight starts. So far, he has given up a total of 21 home runs this season.
Over the past five games, Jhonkensy Noel has gone 4/15 with three homers and five RBIs for the Guardians. Will Brennan has also been swinging the bat well, going 7/22 in his last six games. For the season, Josh Naylor and José Ramírez are the Guardians' top power threats, with Naylor ranking 2nd on the team with 27 homers, and Ramírez's 32 homers leading the team and ranking 5th in the league. Ramírez also has 100 RBIs, which is 2nd in the MLB.
As a team, the Guardians are averaging 4.6 runs per game, which is 13th in the league. They have been a better offensive team at home, averaging 4.9 runs per game. Overall, they are batting .239, which is 14th in the MLB, and are 12th in home runs. So far, the Guardians have been good at putting the ball in play, as they have the 4th fewest strikeouts in the league.
Brewers Preview
Currently, the Brewers have a 71-52 overall record and are leading the NL Central by ten games over the Cardinals. They have won four straight games and are up 2-0 in their series vs. the Guardians. When the Brewers win, they do so by an average margin of 3.5 runs, but when they lose, they lose by an average of 2.8 runs.
For the season, Milwaukee's games have gone over the total in 66 of 116 games. When the over/under line is set at 8.5 runs, their games have gone over in 26 out of 45 matchups. Against the run line, the Brewers are 29-32 at home and have an overall record of 64-59.
Right-hander Colin Rea gets the start for the Brewers today as he faces the Guardians at home. Rea has made 20 starts this season and has a record of 10-4 with a 3.72 ERA. In his 20 starts, he has turned in seven quality starts and is averaging 7.22 strikeouts per nine innings. Rea's last outing came against the Dodgers, where he took the loss after giving up seven earned runs in six innings of work. Before that, he had pitched seven scoreless innings in a win over the Braves. So far, he has been much better on the road, coming in with a 4.38 ERA at home compared to 3.3 on the road.
William Contreras has been swinging a hot bat of late for the Brewers, going 6/20 in his last six games with four homers. For the season, he is batting .284 and is 3rd on the team with 71 RBIs. Willy Adames has a team-high 22 homers this season and is 8th in the league with 84 RBIs. Adames is also on a three-game hitting streak coming into the game.
As a team, the Brewers are 9th in the league in scoring at 4.8 runs per game. They have been even better on the road, averaging 4.9 runs per contest. Overall, they are batting .253 as a team, which is the 6th best mark in the MLB.
Guardians vs. Brewers Prediction: Brewers ML -122
Our prediction for today's Guardians vs. Brewers matchup is that the Brewers will come out on top by a score of 6-5. With the payout for a Brewers win sitting at -122, this is the bet we recommend taking for this game.
Looking at the starting pitchers, our projections have Colin Rea finishing with four strikeouts compared to Ben Lively with just three. We also have Rea finishing with fewer hits allowed than Lively, and he is 12th in our starting pitcher rankings compared to Lively at 17th.
