Tampa Bay Rays vs. Cleveland Guardians September 28 Betting Preview

After dropping the first game of the series on Tuesday, the Cleveland Guardians (86-68) will look to bounce back as they host the Tampa Bay Rays (85-69) on Wednesday. This game will be played at Progressive Field with first pitch scheduled for 6:10 p.m.

In Tuesday’s opener, the Rays won 6-5 in 11 innings. Javy Guerra picked up the win for Tampa Bay in relief, while Jose Siri hit his seventh home run of the season.

For Cleveland, Shane Bieber had an off day as he gave up four runs over six innings in his start. Trevor Stephan took the loss in relief after giving up two runs (one earned) in an inning of work.

Offensively, both Steven Kwan and Jose Ramirez had three hits apiece. Amed Rosario, Oscar Gonzalez, and Will Brennan all added two hits.

The Guardians are slight favorites to win on Wednesday. They are (-124) to win, while the Rays’ moneyline sits at (+107). The runline features Tampa Bay +1.5 (-239), and the over/under for total runs is six.

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Tampa Looks To Improve On Road Record

As a playoff team, it isn’t surprising to know that the Rays sit at a solid 85-69. What is surprising is how bad they have been on the road (34-39) compared to home (51-30). They will look to improve on that mark as they take on Cleveland at Progressive Field.

Taking the mound for the first time this season for Tampa Bay will be righty Tyler Glasnow. He has been out all season after undergoing Tommy John surgery last season. In 14 games last year, he was 5-2, with a 2.66 ERA, 0.93 WHIP, and had 123 strikeouts in 88 innings.

With this being his first outing in over a year, don’t be surprised if he is on a pitch count and doesn’t go very deep in this one.

Randy Arozarena has been sizzling hot over the last month. In that span, he is hitting .303/.327/.495 with three home runs, 19 runs batted in, and 13 runs scored. He has also stolen eight bases in the last month.

Guardians Look To Bounce Back

After having the weight of competing for the AL Central lifted off of their shoulders, it wasn’t surprising to see a bit of a letdown in Tuesday’s opener. Trying to get back on track, Cleveland will look to win at home, where they are 40-33 this year.

Righty Triston McKenzie will take the ball for Terry Francona on Wednesday. In 29 games this season, he is 11-11 with a 3.04 ERA, 0.96 WHIP, and he has 180 strikeouts in 180.1 innings.

McKenzie picked up the win in his last start against the White Sox. In that outing, he went eight innings, allowing two earned runs, and struck out 13.

All-Star third baseman Jose Ramirez continues to lead this team offensively. In 573 at-bats this year, he is hitting .277/.354/.515 with a team-leading 28 home runs, 119 runs batted in, and 86 runs scored.

McKenzie Looks To Even Series

Going against a guy that hasn’t pitched in over a year in Tyler Glasnow, it wouldn’t be shocking to see the Rays go to their bullpen a little bit earlier than normal tonight. Given that the bullpen had to cover seven innings of Tuesday’s game, that could work in Cleveland’s favor.

Regardless, the Guardians will look for a solid start from Triston McKenzie. If he can slow down the Rays’ offense, the Guardians should have a good shot of putting up some runs in this one and evening the series at one game apiece.