The Tigers make the trip to Phoenix to face the Diamondbacks! Both teams have been inconsistent this season, but things are looking better for the Diamondbacks than they are for the Tigers. Our MLB odds series has our Tigers-Diamondbacks prediction, odds, and pick for Saturday.
The Tigers have been inconsistent on their way to a 21-22 record. Their bats have struggled a bit, ranking near the bottom of the MLB, but their pitching has been great, and are a top-10 unit overall. There is a massive discrepancy between their bats and their play on the mound. Riley Greene, Mark Canha, Kerry Carpenter, and Spencer Torkelson have been able to stand out in an offense that has struggled so far up to this point in the season. In comparison, the pitching has been great. Their ace has been Tarik Skubal who has been nothing short of dominant for them so far to start the season and then Jack Flaherty, Reese Olson, and Casey Mize have also been very good behind him. The Tigers' pitching is the biggest key to their success during the entire season.
The Diamondbacks have been inconsistent, but are playing better recently. They have also won three out of their last four games. The Diamondbacks have had a strong season behind the plate and are just outside the top 10. Their pitching has struggled and is in the bottom half of the MLB. Lourdes Gurriel Jr., Ketel Marte, Joc Pederson, Corbin Carroll, Eugenio Suarez, and Christian Walker have been great behind the plate, while Zac Gallen, Brandon Pfaadt, and Merrill Kelly, despite his injury, have been very good on the mound. The Diamondbacks are a more talented team on paper than the team that won the NL last season, but they need to figure things out, and it seems like they are finally figuring things out.
Here are the MLB Odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
MLB Odds: Tigers-Diamondbacks Odds
Detroit Tigers: +1.5 (-184)
Moneyline:+122
Arizona Diamondbacks: -1.5 (+152)
Moneyline: -144
Over: 8 (-105)
Under: 8 (-115)
How to Watch Tigers vs. Diamondbacks
Time: 8:10 pm ET
TV: Bally Sports Detroit
Stream: fuboTV (Click for free trial)
Why The Tigers Will Cover The Spread/Win
The Tigers are starting Jack Flaherty on the mound where he has a 0-3 record, a 3.88 ERA, and a 1.05 WHIP. Through 48.2 innings, Flaherty has allowed 23 runs on 45 hits with eight walks and 63 strikeouts. The Tigers are 3-5 in the eight games that he's started this season. In his last start, he pitched 6.2 innings and gave up three runs on seven hits with zero walks and seven strikeouts. Flaherty has been very good for the Tigers this season, but he gets a tough matchup against the Diamondbacks and their bats.
The offense for the Tigers has not played well this season. The Tigers are 23rd in the MLB in team batting average at .225 after having a team batting average of .236 last season where they finished near the bottom of the MLB. Kerry Carpenter and Riley Greene lead the way in most of the batting categories for the Tigers. Canha is the leader in batting average at .241, in RBI at 20, and OBP at .366. Greene then leads the way in home runs at nine and in total hits at 37. This will be a very tough matchup against Zac Gallen who has been having a very good year once again.
Why The Diamondbacks Will Cover The Spread/Win
The Diamondbacks are starting Zac Gallen on the mound where he has a 5-2 record, a 2.86 ERA, and a 1.11 WHIP. Through 44 innings, Gallen has allowed 14 runs on 35 hits with 14 walks and 45 strikeouts. The Diamondbacks are 5-3 in the eight games that he's started in this season. In his last start, he pitched six innings and gave up two runs on four hits with two walks and four strikeouts in a Diamondbacks win. Gallen has a very favorable matchup in this game against a struggling Tigers offense.
The offense for the Diamondbacks has been a standout so far this season. The Diamondbacks are 11th in the MLB in team batting average at .245 after having a team batting average of .250 last season. Ketel Marte and Christian Walker lead the team in almost every important batting category. Also, at least 13 Diamondbacks have hit one home run up to this point in the season. Marte leads the team in batting average at .284, in home runs at nine, and total hits at 50. Walker then leads the way in RBI at 28 and in OBP at .372. The Diamondbacks get a tough matchup against Jack Flaherty on the mound because they both have had solid seasons so far.
Final Tigers-Diamondbacks Prediction & Pick
This game is going to be close because of pitching. Gallen and Flaherty are both having good seasons and will get in a duel to slow down each team's offense. The Tigers have struggled on offense, but the difference is pitching and Flaherty can slow down the Diamondbacks on offense. Expect the Tigers to cover, but the Diamondbacks should win close.
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Final Tigers-Diamondbacks Prediction & Pick: Tigers +1.5 (-184)
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