The Guardians will be looking to move to 61-40 and they are sending Tanner Bibee to the mound vs. a Tigers club that is 50-52 and starting Jack Flaherty. Cleveland is currently 1st in the AL Central, while the Tigers are 4th in the division.
Wednesday's forecast in Cleveland calls for light rain and temperatures in the mid to upper 70s. The over/under line is currently at 7.5 runs, and the Guardians are favored on the money line (-150). Detroit has a money line payout of +127. BSDET will be televising this AL Central matchup.
Detroit vs. Cleveland Matchup At A Glance
- Teams: Tigers at Guardians
- Where: Progressive Field Cleveland
- Date: Wednesday, July 24th
- Betting Odds CLE -150 | DET +127 O/U 7.5
Tigers vs Guardians Last Game Recap
Cleveland picked up a 5-4 win over the Tigers in the most recent game of this series. The Guardians had a three-run 6th inning and scored the game's go-ahead run in the 5th. As for the Tigers, they scored two runs in the 4th and added two more in the 7th.
Xzavion Curry got the start for the Guardians, going just 4 1/3 innings while giving up two runs and striking out one. He did not factor in the decision, as Cade Smith got the win out of the bullpen. Emmanuel Clase got the save. Tyler Holton only went 1 2/3 innings for the Tigers, giving up no runs on one hit.
Jose Ramirez and Jhonkensy Noel each homered for the Guardians, while Steven Kwan scored twice and drove in a run while going 2/3. Wenceel Perez hit a home run for the Tigers.
Tigers Preview
As underdogs, the Tigers have a 28-32 record this season, and they are 19-23 on the road as underdogs. Their overall series record is 14-13-4, and they have won four straight series. Detroit's straight-up record is 50-52, and they are 26-28 on the road.
On the run line, the Tigers have excelled as underdogs with a 39-21 record, but they have struggled as favorites with a 12-30 record. The over/under record for Tigers games this season is 56-43, and their games have averaged 8.6 runs. Going into today's game, the Tigers have a 5-game over streak.
Right-hander Jack Flaherty gets the start for the Tigers today as he faces off against the Guardians on the road. He has made 17 starts this season and has a record of 7-5 with a 3.13 ERA. Flaherty's WHIP for the season is currently .96, and opponents are batting .209 off him this year. In his last outing, Flaherty picked up the win, going 5 2/3 innings and giving up two earned runs on three hits. Before that, he had given up at least five earned runs in three straight starts. So far, he has turned in 10 quality starts and is averaging 11.35 strikeouts per nine innings.
Heading into today's game, the Tigers are averaging 4.3 runs per game, which is 15th in the league. They have been pretty consistent at home and on the road this season, averaging 4.4 runs per game at home and 4.3 on the road. As a team, they are batting just .234, which is 19th in the league, and have a collective on-base percentage of .299.
Riley Greene has been a bright spot for the Tigers this season, as he is batting .268 with a team-high 51 RBIs and 17 homers, which is 13th in the league. He comes into the game on a three-game hitting streak. Matt Vierling has also been swinging a hot bat of late, going 11/34 in his last eight games. During this stretch, he has six runs scored and three RBIs.
Guardians Preview
Cleveland has an overall record of 60-40 and is leading the AL Central by five games over the Twins. They have dropped three straight series and have a series record of 19-10-2 this season. As the favorite, the Guardians have a 44-22 record, and at home, they are 29-12 as the favorite.
For the season, the Guardians have an over/under record of 49-45, and their games have averaged 8.6 runs. The over/under line for today's game is set at 7.5 runs, and their O/U record in games with that line is 15-15. The over has hit in their last two games, and 64.0% of their games have had higher total lines than today's 7.5 runs.
Cleveland is sending Tanner Bibee to the mound today vs. the Tigers, and he will be looking to build off his last outing, where he didn't give up a run. In that outing vs. the Padres, he went 5 2/3 innings and picked up the win. Looking at his overall numbers, Bibee has made 20 starts, and opponents are batting .220 this year. Bibee's ERA for the season is 3.58, along with a record of 8-4. For the year, he has allowed 13 homers and is averaging 10.25 strikeouts per nine innings.
Jose Ramirez has been swinging a hot bat of late, going 7/21 in his last five games with a home run and five RBIs. He is also on a three-game hitting streak. Overall, Ramirez is batting .274 with 24 homers and 82 RBIs, which is 2nd in the league. Josh Naylor is 2nd on the team with 22 homers but is batting just .236 for the season.
As a team, the Guardians are 10th in scoring at 4.7 runs per game. They have been even better at home, averaging 4.9 runs per contest. Overall, they are batting .243 and have the league's 12th best home run total. Cleveland is also one of the best teams in the league at avoiding strikeouts.
Tigers vs. Guardians Prediction: Guardians ML -150
Our prediction for this one is that the Guardians will pick up a 5-4 win over the Tigers. Given that they are at -150 on the money line, this is the way we recommend playing this one.
Looking at the starting pitchers, our projections have Tanner Bibee finishing with six strikeouts compared to Jack Flaherty with six as well. Flaherty is projected to go six innings, while Bibee is projected to go just five.
