The Detroit Tigers looked like they were getting hot at the right time with a Wild Card series sweep of the Houston Astros, but now they are looking to bounce back from a humbling loss to the Cleveland Guardians in Game 1 of the ALDS.
Cleveland, which earned a bye as the American League Central Division champion and No. 2 seed in the league behind the New York Yankees, kicked off its postseason campaign with a dominant 7-0 victory on Saturday and can take complete control of the series on Monday.
Here's a look at the best bets to be made for Game 2, which is set for 4:08 PM ET and televised on TBS and truTV.
It is true that Cleveland has a tough matchup on its hands with Tarik Skubal taking the mound for Detroit, but there is still good value on the Guardians as home underdogs.
Rest has not always been ideal for teams going into the playoffs in the recent past and rust can prove costly. However, early returns suggest that some time off has served the Guardians well.
On the heels of five full days free of game action, the AL Central champs got right back in gear to crush the Tigers in Game 1 on Saturday.
Tanner Bibee went 4.1 innings and struck out six batters while allowing just four hits and one walk. Lane Thomas belted a three-run homer in the first inning and from there the home team never looked back.
Facing Skubal instead of a whole host of Detroit relievers is a whole different proposition, but this is another test that Cleveland can pass. Dating back to the regular season, manager A.J. Hinch's club has scored at least five runs in five of its last eight outings. In other words, this also isn't an easy matchup for Skubal.
Meanwhile, the Guardians are countering with former Tiger Matthew Boyd. In limited work this season, Boyd went 2-2 with a 2.72 ERA and 1.13 WHIP with 46 strikeouts and 13 walks in 39.2 innings. He has allowed more than two earned runs only once in eight starts, and he has not surrendered more than three on any occasion.
When the Guardians get hot, they can really play well. Since the All-Star break, they have six winning streaks of at least three games, including a pair of five-game runs.
Don't be surprised if Saturday's win sends them on their way to more success.
This has all the makings of a classic postseason contest, one in which runs come at a premium.
As mentioned above, Boyd is capable of going toe-to-toe with Skubal. A sample size of eight starts is by no means large, but at the same time, it's big enough to show that Boyd is pitching great in 2024.
But Skubal has been spectacular at home, sporting a 2.25 ERA at Comerica Park this year compared to a 3.20 ERA on the road.
Skubal's accomplishments, of course, are well documented. He is well on his way to the AL Cy Young Award after going 18-4 with a 2.39 ERA and 0.92 WHIP in addition to 228 strikeouts and only 35 walks in 192.0 innings, and is hardly slowing down, either.
In fact, he compiled a 1.52 ERA in four September starts and in his Wild Card appearance against Houston, he fired 6.0 innings of shutout baseball.
There is no need to overthink things when Skubal is on the mound; the Under is the way to go.
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Detroit Tigers | -130 ML |
Cleveland Guardians | +110 ML |
Run Line | Tigers -1.5 (+145) |
Total | O/U 6.5 |
Spencer Torkelson (DET) | +475 |
Riley Greene (DET) | +650 |
Andy Ibanez (DET) | +700 |
Jose Ramirez (CLE) | +550 |
Jhonkensy Noel (CLE) | +650 |
Lane Thomas (CLE) | +700 |
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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.