Cleveland Guardians vs. Texas Rangers September 24 Betting Preview

Having won eight of their last nine games, the Cleveland Guardians (84-67) are one of the hottest teams in baseball. They will look to stay red hot as they take on the Texas Rangers (65-84) on Saturday night. The first pitch from Globe Life Park is scheduled for 7:05 p.m.

The Guardians took the opener of this three-game series on Friday 6-3. Cody Morris was really strong in this one, allowing two runs (one earned) on four hits in five innings of work.

The Rangers’ Jon Gray pitched well, giving up one run (no earned) in five innings. Unfortunately for Rangers fans, Taylor Hearn gave up five runs in just a third of an inning in relief.

The Guardians are the favorites on Saturday despite playing on the road. They are (-124) to win, while the Rangers’ moneyline sits at (+108). The runline features Texas +1.5 (-164), and the over/under for total runs is 7.5.

Guardians Magic Number At Three

With the White Sox losing on Friday and the Guardians winning, Cleveland’s magic number now sits at just three games to win their first AL Central title since 2018. The Guardians will look to inch closer to clinching the division as they take on Texas Saturday.

On the mound for the Guardians will be righty Cal Quantrill. In 29 games, he is 13-5 with a 3.56 ERA, 1.24 WHIP, and he has struck out 116 in 169.1 innings of work.

He picked up a win over the Minnesota Twins in his last start. In that outing, he gave up three earned runs on nine hits in 5.1 innings.

Offensively, this will be the first time that the Guardians have faced the Rangers’ Glenn Otto. Against righties this year, Jose Ramirez has been Cleveland’s best hitter. In 418 at bats versus right-handers, he is hitting .289/.365/.545 with 22 home runs and 91 runs batted in.

Rangers Look To Even Up The Series

While the Rangers will be on the outside looking in for this year’s playoffs, they would still like to give their home fans something to cheer about as the season winds down. On Saturday, they will look to split the first two games of the series by picking up a win.

26-year-old righty Glenn Otto will take the ball for the Rangers. He is 6-9 in 24 games with a 4.88 ERA and 1.37 WHIP, and he has 92 strikeouts in 118 innings.

He took the loss in his last outing after giving up four earned runs on seven hits in 3.1 innings. In his last three starts combined, he has given up eight earned runs in 13.1 innings.

Keep an eye on Marcus Semien Saturday. Albeit in just four career at bats against Quantrill, but he is hitting .750 with a home run. Kevin Plawecki has also homered off the righty.

Guardians Keep Rolling

The Guardians could not ask for more as we draw towards the close of September. Not only have they seemingly put away the rest of their division in the last week, but they are playing excellent baseball with the postseason fast approaching.

Trying to keep the good times rolling will be Quantrill. He has quietly had an excellent season for Cleveland and gives them as good of a shot as anyone of securing a series win on Saturday.

Otto has shown flashes of brilliance this season, but with the way the Guardians are playing right now, it could take a lot to topple them. The Guardians come into this game with a lot of confidence, and Cleveland bettors should too.