Detroit Tigers vs. Cleveland Guardians July 16 Betting Preview
After taking the first two games of their four-game series, the Cleveland Guardians (45-44) will look for a series win on Saturday as they host the Detroit Tigers (37-54). The Guardians will host this one at Progressive Field, with the first pitch scheduled for 4:10 pm ET.
On Friday, the Guardians won the second game of the series 6-5. Zach Plesac struggled, giving up five runs (two earned) in just 3.2 innings, but the bullpen locked it down for 5.1 innings.
Offensively, the Guardians slashed nine hits, with Andres Gimenez and Austin Hedges hitting two apiece. Josh Naylor added two runs batted in while Steven Kwan scored twice.
Riley Greene went two for five for the Tigers with a home run and three runs batted in. Harold Castro had three hits in the loss.
Betting Odds
The Guardians are the favorites in this one playing at home. They are -168 to win while the Tigers’ moneyline sits at +142. The runline features Detroit +1.5 (-146), and the over/under for total runs is 8.5.
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Pitching Matchup
Trying to pick up their first win of the series, the Tigers will send 33-year-old righty Michael Pineda to the mound. In eight games, he is 2-4 with a 3.58 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, and has 19 strikeouts in 37.2 innings.
For Cleveland, they will counter with righty Cal Quantrill. In 16 games, he is 5-5 with a 3.99 ERA, 1.31 WHIP, and he has 58 strikeouts in 94.2 innings. Quantrill picked up the win in his last start, giving up four runs in six innings of work.
Tigers Trying To Find A Road Win
After sweeping the Guardians in a four-game series last week, the Tigers were confident coming into this series. Unfortunately for Tigers’ fans, after having lost the first two games, Detroit is trying to find a win on the road, where they are 14-30 this season.
Not too many Tigers’ hitters have had success against Cal Quantrill except for future Hall-of-Famer Miguel Cabrera. In nine at bats, Cabrera has six hits and a run batted in. Eric Haase is the only one to homer off of the righty to this point.
Detroit continues to struggle offensively. They are the worst scoring team in baseball, averaging just 3.14 runs per game (2.63 on the road).
Guardians Try To Keep Winning Heading Into Break
Having won two in a row and four of their last six, the Guardians have been making some strides in cutting their divisional deficit. Heading into play Saturday, Cleveland sits at 45-44, just 2.5 games behind the Minnesota Twins.
Against righties, Jose Ramirez has been the Guardians’ best hitter. In 239 at bats versus right-handed pitchers, he is hitting 301/.383/.603 with 14 home runs and 57 runs batted in.
Josh Naylor has also been strong, hitting .301/.359/.495 with eight home runs and 38 runs batted in against righties.
Against Michael Pineda, Franmil Reyes is the only one who has homered off of the righty, while Jose Ramirez has the most at bats against him, going three for 10.
Cleveland Looks To Add Another Win
Heading into the All-Star break with a four-game sweep would be exactly what Cleveland could use as they try to stay competitive in the AL Central. With Cal Quantrill and Shane Bieber on the mound for the next two games, they should be in good shape to get that done.
Still, they have to focus on one game at a time, and Saturday’s pitching matchup puts the Guardians in good shape. If the Guardians can get a handful of runs off of Pineda, Quantrill should be able to take care of the rest.
The Tigers have the worst road record in baseball, and those woes will likely continue on Saturday.
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