Guardians vs Twins Odds: Minnesota Small Favorites at Home
Lopez Faces Bibee in Decent Pitching Matchup
The Guardians vs Twins odds have Minnesota as -140 favorites at home in Thursday night’s game. The total on the game is 8 and the Twins are +145 on the run line laying 1.5 runs. The game features a pair of decent pitchers in Tanner Bibee and Pablo Lopez.
The Guardians enter the game off a 12-8 victory against Baltimore in a game that saw Shane Bieber get roughed up. It was the second time this season Cleveland has scored at least 10 runs. The Guardians have had trouble stringing together wins, going just 9-15 after a victory.
The Twins return home after defeating the Astros in Houston on Wednesday and are in their preferred role. Minnesota is 15-7 as a home favorite this season and 6-1 when favored by -140 or less.
Cleveland Guardians
Bibee has put up some solid MLB stats since joining the Guardians after three games in the minor leagues this season. He’s struck out 34 batters in 34 1/3 innings, while allowing 28 hits and nine walks in his six MLB starts. His ERA is 2.88, but the Guardians are 2-4 in the games he’s started.
A big reason for that is run support, or lack of in Bibee’s case. Cleveland has scored 17 runs in his six starts. The Guardians have scored four runs three times, two runs twice and a single run once. Cleveland is 2-1 when scoring four runs with Bibee on the mound.
But lack of scoring has been Cleveland’s biggest obstacle this season. The Guardians are No. 23 in the MLB stats in team batting this season. Cleveland is one of the bottom five teams in run production. While the pitching is decent, it isn’t good enough to pick up the offense when it’s struggling.
Minnesota Twins
Lopez hasn’t pitched quite as well as the Twins had hoped when they got the former Marlin. But he hasn’t been bad, with his stats skewed by a couple of rough outings. The Twins are 6-5 when he starts. Several of his poorer outings have been at home, so Lopez has better stats on the road.
The Twins have gotten solid pitching for the most part and are No. 2 in team ERA. The offense hasn’t been as good, but averages the most runs per game in the AL Central. That’s not saying a whole lot, as the division has been one of the worst in baseball. Four of the five teams have losing MLB records. The Twins are the only team in the division to have a winning record at 29-27.
Handicapping the Game
Neither pitcher has faced the opposing team, so there should be a slight edge to the pitchers early. It’s not surprising Bibee hasn’t faced the Twins. But Lopez is in his sixth MLB season. You would think he would have faced Cleveland at some point.
The Guardians vs Twins odds on the moneyline are pretty much spot on. The Twins have to be small favorites, as they’re better at home and in a favorable situation. The pitching matchup is pretty even and you can make a case for either pitcher.
The teams met earlier this season in a three-game series in Cleveland. The Guardians took two of the three games. But one common theme was all the games were low scoring. The Twins won the opener 2-0, only to see the Guardians bounce back with 4-3 and 2-0 victories.
The Guardians vs Twins odds on the total could very well be a little bit on the high side. Neither team is an offensive juggernaut. Both pitchers are decent. Cleveland is 2-4 in totals with Bibee on the mound. The Twins have gone 5-5-1 in totals when Lopez starts. The under looks to be the best bet in this game.
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