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Get ready American League fans! The Cleveland Guardians will suit up for battle as they take on their AL Central rivals in the Minnesota Twins out on the diamond. It is time to check out our MLB odds series, where our Guardians-Twins prediction and pick will be made.
The second-place Guardians may sit at 15-16, one game below the .50 threshold, but Cleveland only sits three games back of the Twins for first place. They will be looking to make up some ground this weekend versus Minnesota. After dropping the series debut 12-8 on Friday, the Guardians will send out their ace in RHP Shane Bieber. Bieber is eager to improve his 4.13 ERA to begin 2022.
Through 33 games, the Twins are 19-14 and have inflicted a good amount of damage from the dish and on the rubber. With an additional healthy 12-7 record at their home ballpark of Target Field, Minnesota will seek to separate themselves with another game over Cleveland by giving the starting nod to southpaw Devin Smeltzer, who has yet to appear in the majors this season.
Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the Guardians-Twins MLB odds:
MLB Odds: Guardians-Twins Odds
Cleveland Guardians: -1.5 (+118)
Minnesota Twins: +1.5 (-142)
Over: 8.5 (-115)
Under: 8.5 (-105)
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Why The Guardians Could Cover the Spread
There is no question that the Guardians will be putting on their best Batman impersonation in seeking vengeance versus their arch rivals in the Twins. While these divisional games may not be significant in May, they certainly may end up having playoff implications later down the road.
After a losing season that saw Cleveland put up an 80-82 record through 162 games, the newly branded Guardians are trying to put up more victories in the win column in order to reach the postseason for the first time since 2020 when they came up short in the AL Wild Card Series. To get back to such a select few of teams playing well into October, Cleveland mush show more consistency in all aspects of their game.
For the longest time thus far in 2022, Cleveland was one of the most prolific squads in scoring runs, as they still sit with the seventh most at 153. Not to mention, but the Guardians also are in the top five statistically in batting average, on-base percentage, and slugging percentage through their 31 games played to this point.
Historically, Bieber has fared fairly well against the Twins during his sparkling career. The two-time All-Star and 2020 AL Cy Young winner is 5-1 with a 3.63 ERA in eleven starts versus Minnesota. The 26-year old Cleveland ace should be extra motivated in this one as well after he had an uncharacteristic outing that saw him get shellacked for seven runs on eight hits in only 3 1/3 innings pitched. Prior to the poor start, Bieber had not given up more than three runs in his previous five starts. Don't expect Bieber to have a repeat of that showing, as he should be a big reason why the Guardians can cover the spread on this Saturday evening.
Why The Twins Could Cover the Spread
Switching gears to the Twins, and they could not have asked more from their crew in their 12-8 win against Cleveland on Friday. In fact, it was rookie shortstop Royce Lewis that stole the show, crushing his first career home run and grand slam in the victory. A 2017 first overall selection, Lewis has all the intangibles to be the next great middle infielder in this league. With fellow shortstop Carlos Correa in the same clubhouse to show him the ropes and lead by example, the Twins future is looking brighter than a brand new penny.
With 12 runs coming to cross the plate yesterday, it was by far the best offensive performance by Minnesota on the young season. Swatting a grand total of four home runs, the Twins continue to add positive numbers statistically to a lineup that has already experienced success prior to Friday. Minnesota is arguably a top ten hitting squad when healthy, as their .240 batting average and .392 slugging percentage back that statement up.
When looking upon the Minnesota arms on the starting pitching staff and bullpen, they have exceeded expectations considering the amount of injuries that have began to stack up on the injured list. With more than four pitchers shelved at the halfway point of May, the Twins have had to move players around at a frequent rate much earlier than they would've hoped. However, the Twins have pitched magnificently, tossing to the tune of a 3.46 ERA and even more importantly, getting 20 quality starts out of their starters. While they did give up eight runs in the matchup last night, expect them to have a bounce back performance that should give them an excellent chance in covering the spread.
Final Guardians-Twins Prediction & Pick
Even with Bieber on the mound for Cleveland, there is not one team in the majors that wants to face this Twins lineup right now. It is possible the Guardians still win by one run, but asking them to cover a -1.5 spread feels like too much to ask.
Final Guardians-Twins Pick: Twins +1.5 (-142)
