Cleveland Indians vs. Seattle Mariners Weekend Series Preview, Odds, Prediction

This weekend will feature an American League battle of West versus Central as the Seattle Mariners (31-33) take on the Cleveland Indians (32-27). The Mariners currently sit in third in the A.L West, trailing Oakland by 6.5 games. The Indians trail the White Sox by four games in the A.L Central.

This will be a three-game matchup between the two teams this weekend. The Indians will host this series at Progressive Field.

Seattle comes into this weekend after losing a three-game series to the Detroit Tigers. In Thursday’s finale, the Mariners lost 8-3. In the loss, Mitch Haniger hit two home runs, but starter Justus Sheffield gave up five runs (three earned) in four innings.

The Indians split a brief, two-game series with the St. Louis Cardinals. After winning Tuesday’s opener 10-1, they lost Wednesday’s game 8-2. The Indians come into this series having had a day off on Thursday.

Schedule

The Schedule for the three-game series at Progressive Field is as follows:

• Friday, June 11 - 7:10 pm ET
• Saturday, June 12 - 4:10 pm ET
• Sunday, June 13 - 1:10 pm ET

Pitching Matchup

• Here is the pitching matchup for each game of the series:
• Friday: Justin Dunn (1-2, 3.18 ERA) vs. Aaron Civale (8-2, 3.49 ERA)
• Saturday: Yusei Kikuchi (3-3, 4.05 ERA) vs. TBD
• Sunday: Logan Gilbert (1-2, 4.98 ERA) vs. Shane Bieber (7-3, 2.96 ERA)

Looking At Odds

Only four games back in the division, the Indians are +410 to win the A.L. Central. The Mariners are +4000 to win the A.L West.

In terms of winning the World Series, the Cleveland Indians are +4000 to do so while the Seattle Mariners are +15000.

By The Numbers

Both the Indians and Mariners rank in the bottom third of the league in scoring. Cleveland ranks 20th, averaging 4.12 runs per game. The Mariners rank 22nd, averaging just 3.94 runs.

Defensively, it is once again the Indians with the advantage. They rank 15th, allowing opponents an average of 4.32 runs per game. The Mariners rank 22nd is allowing 4.78 runs per game.

Mariners Trying To Hang In A.L. West Race

At 31-33, the Seattle Mariners are currently in fourth in the A.L. West, 6.5 games behind the Oakland Athletics. If they want to close the gap in the division, though, they are going to have to improve on the road. While they are 17-14 at home, they are just 14-19 on the road thus far.

Leading the way for the Mariners offensively is outfielder Mitch Haniger. After hitting two home runs on Thursday, he is now hitting .258/.306/.525 with a team-leading 16 home runs, 40 runs batted in, and 43 runs scored.

Over the last week, shortstop J.P. Crawford has also been hitting well. In that span, he is hitting .429/.517/.762 with a home run and five runs batted in.

Indians Hope To Continue Playing Well At home

Even though the Indians are four games back in the division, they have had a respectable season thus far at 32-27. Part of their success stems from a solid home (14-12) and away (18-15) record.

Even though they rank in the bottom third in scoring, the Indians are led offensively by third baseman Jose Ramirez. He currently leads the team in home runs (14), runs batted in (35), and runs scored (41). He has also stolen six bases while hitting .265/.347/.536.

One player that Cleveland would still like to see more from is outfielder Eddie Rosario. As their biggest offseason acquisition, he is second in runs batted in with 33, but he is hitting just .244/.294/.356 with four home runs.

Pitching Lines Up Well For Cleveland

With a Mariners team that has struggled with consistency, this is a series that the Indians should be able to win. If that wasn’t enough, the Indians’ rotation also sets them up well.

With Aaron Civale taking the opener and Shane Bieber having the finale, the Indians should be able to take at least two of three, if not all three.