Subscribe
Follow Us
The Toronto Blue Jays will aim to take game four of the series today against the Cleveland Guardians. It is time to continue our MLB odds series with a Blue Jays-Guardians prediction, pick, and how to watch.
It has been a low-scoring series in the first three games so far. On Monday in Cleveland Hyun Jin Ryu went four scoreless for the Blue Jays before leaving with an injury. The bullpen came in a did their job though. The scoreless game ended in the top of the eighth on a two-run home run by Cavan Biggo. Bo Naylor would get a run back for the Guardians in the bottom of the inning on a single, but George Spring made it 3-1 on a single in the ninth. The game would end with that score as the Blue Jays took game one.
Game two of the series saw more great pitching. Yusei Kikuchi went seven innings and gave up just one run for the Blue Jays. Still, he was bested by Tanner Bibee who went seven scoreless innings to lead the Guardians to a 1-0 victory. More of the same followed in game three. Kevin Gausman went seven scoreless innings for the Blue Jays and the only run of the game was a solo home run by George Springer in the first as the Blue Jays won 1-0. Today, the two teams will face the last game of their four-game series.
Here are the Blue Jays-Guardians MLB odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
MLB Odds: Blue Jays-Guardians Odds
Toronto Blue Jays: -1.5 (+116)
Cleveland Guardians: +1.5 (-140)
Over: 9 (-122)
Under: 9 (+100)
How To Watch Blue Jays vs. Guardians
TV: Sportsnet/BSGL
Stream: MLB.TV
Time: 1:10 PM ET/ 10:10 AM PT
*Watch MLB games LIVE with fuboTV (click for a free trial)*
Why The Blue Jays Could Cover The Spread
For both teams in this series, it has been all about the pitching. The series has seen a combined six runs in three games so far, and the pitching has been fantastic. On the season, the Blue Jays are first in team ERA, ninth in WHIP, and tenth in opponent batting average. They also sit third in quality starts. It will be Alex Manoah on the mound today for the Blue Jays. He is 3-8 on the season with a 5.72 ERA. Since being banished to the minors, Manoah has come back much stronger. He has made five starts, and pitched 25.1 innings, giving up 12 runs. That is good for a 4.26 ERA, as he has gone 1-1 and the Blue Jays have won four of his five starts.
The offense that had been rolling in has come crashing down in the first three games of the series. Regardless, the Blue Jays are still 15th on the season in runs scored, fifth in batting average, fifth in on-base percentage, and 11th in slugging. It has been Davis Schneider who has helped fill in well for Bo Bichette who is out with an injury. In his five games of action, the first five of his major league career, he is hitting .474. two home runs and five RBIs. He has also walked three times giving him an OBP of .565. Meanwhile, Matt Chapman continues to drive in runs. In the last week, Chapman has four RBIs with the help of a home run and two doubles. Chapman is hitting just .296 though. He has struggled with strikeouts though. Chapman has struck out ten times in the last week.
George Springer is not struggling with making contact though. In the last week, he is hitting .444 with an OBP of .484. In there he has hit a home run and three doubles, which have led to four RBIs. He has also scored five times in the last week. Scoring is something Brandon Belt has done a lot of as well. He has also scored five runs in the last week while hitting .316. He had walked four times in the last week as well. That gives him a .435 on-base percentage, while he has also hit a home run and two doubles.
Why The Guardians Could Cover The Spread
Like the Blue Jays, the Guardians have gotten some quality pitching in recent days. On the season, allowing very few runs is the norm for the Guardians. They are third in the team ERA while sitting 11th in WHIP and opponent batting average. The Guardians are also 12th in quality starts. The Guardians will be sending Noah Syndergaard to the mound today. He is 1-5 on the season with a 6.75 ERA. He has made two starts as a member of the Guardians. In the first one, he pitched well, giving up just one run in 5.1 innings of work. The next time out was rough though, as he gave up five runs in six innings, including four home runs in a loss.
The Guardians' struggles to score is nothing new for them this year. They have scored just two runs this season, and just 18 runs in the last ten games. The Guardians rank 27th this season in runs scored, while sitting 18th in batting average, 24th in on-base percentage, and 28th in slugging. In the last week, the Guardians have struggled to hit. They are hitting just .199 as a team in the last week, with 39 strikeouts. They have just 11 RBIs in the last week, and no player on the team has more than two RBIs in the last week.
This does not mean the Guardians are devoid of players who are hitting well. Myles Straw has not struck out in the last week while hitting .333. He has scored once in the last week but does not have an extra-base hit. Kole Calhoun is hitting .286 with a .333 on-base percentage. He has just one RBI and one extra-base hit, a double. Calhoun has scored twice in the last week. Andres Gimenez may be the most productive bat in the last week. In the last week he is hitting .250, but getting on base at a .375 clip. He has a home run and two RBIs with three doubles. Giminez has also stolen a base and scored three times.
Final Blue Jays-Guardians Prediction & Pick
While neither pitcher is coming into this game hot, the overall pitching in this series has been amazing. Still, two pitchers on the mound can give up runs in bunches. The biggest concern in the pitching matchup comes with Noah Syndergaard and the number of home runs he is giving up. With how many big power bats the Blue Jays have, they should be able to get a home run or two off of Syndergaard. With that, take the Blue Jays in this one.
Final Blue Jays-Guardians Prediction & Pick: Blue Jays -1.5 (+116)
