The Cleveland Guardians (25-16) travel to face off against the Texas Rangers (22-20) on Monday, May 13th. This game will be played at Globe Life Field in Arlington and televised on BSSW. The Guardians are coming off a win in their previous game, while the Rangers are looking to get back on track from a loss to the Rockies. First pitch is set for 8:05 ET.
Guardians vs Rangers
The Guardians closed out their series vs. the White Sox with a 7-0 win on the road. Leading up to the game, they were the heavy favorite at -174. Offensively, the Guardians scored their seven runs on just five hits and only hit two home runs. David Fry went 1/2 with a homer and two RBIs.
Logan Allen started for the Guardians, going six innings and not giving up a run. He also issued just one walk and struck out three White Sox batters. Cleveland’s bullpen closed things out with three scoreless innings, and the Guardians picked up the win.
Cleveland is 25-16 overall this season, putting them in 1st place in the AL Central. They hold a half-game lead over the White Sox and are 0.5 games ahead of the 3rd place Twins. The Guardians will be on the road today to take on the Rangers, and they currently lead the AL Central with a 7-5 record vs. other teams in the division.
So far, the Guardians have been really good in day games, going 12-3, and they are 13-10 on the road compared to 12-6 at home. As the favorite, the Guardians are 16-9 this year and 9-7 as the underdog. Cleveland’s overall series record is 9-4 heading into today’s game, and they lost 3-1 in their most recent series vs. the White Sox.
When the Cleveland Guardians are on the road, they have been a solid bet against the run line, going 14-9 so far this season. Their average run differential in road games is +1.4 runs per game, and they have an overall run line record of 24-17. They have been a better bet against the run line as the underdog, going 12-4 compared to 12-13 as the favorite.
Despite a combined run average of 8.5 runs per game, the Cleveland Guardians have seen the over/under line set at 8.5 runs in just 12.2% of their games this season. Their over/under record when the line is set at 8.5 runs is 5-8, and their overall over/under record is 21-18. Their last two games have gone under the total, and their last game against the White Sox saw just seven runs scored.
Tanner Bibee Gets The Start For The Guardians
Cleveland is sending right-hander Tanner Bibee to the mound today vs. the Rangers. He has made eight starts this year and has a record of 2-1 with an ERA of 4.91. Bibee’s WHIP for the season is 1.36, and opponents are batting .258 off him this year. In his most recent outing, Bibee finished with a no-decision, giving up four earned runs in four innings of work vs. the Tigers. Before that, he had turned in a quality start vs. the Braves, going seven innings and not giving up a run. So far, he has one quality start this year.
Guardians Offense Breakdown
Heading into today’s game, the Guardians are averaging 4.8 runs per game, which is 10th in the league. They have been a very consistent offense, as they are 11th in road games (4.8 runs per game) and 9th in home games (4.7 runs per game). As a team, they are batting .236, which is 14th in the league, and their team on-base percentage of .306 is also below the league average.
Josh Naylor has been one of the league’s top power hitters this season, as his 11 homers is 3rd in the league. He is also 2nd on the team with 30 RBIs and is batting .275. Over his last five games, he has gone 5/19 with two homers. Jose Ramirez is also near the top of the league in homers, as his nine is 5th in the league. However, he is batting just .235 for the season and has gone 3/19 in his last five games.
The Rangers will be looking to get back on track after closing out their series vs. the Rockies with a 3-1 loss. This was especially tough, as they held a lead going into the bottom of the 9th before the Rockies scored three runs in the bottom of the 9th. Texas was the -148 favorite on the money line going into the game.
José Ureña put together a good start for the Rangers, going 6 2/3 innings and giving up just two earned runs, and striking out three. However, the Rangers couldnjson’t close things out, and Ureña took the loss. The Rangers also wasted a big game from Marcus Semien, who went 2/4 with a run scored.
Texas will host the Guardians today with an overall record of 22-20, and they are 2nd in the AL West, trailing the Mariners by just a half-game. The Rangers head into today’s game having dropped three straight, losing the final three games of their series vs. the Rockies. So far, they are 8-9 in AL West games.
At home, the Rangers are 10-9 this season compared to a road mark of 12-11. As for their overall record, the Rangers are 13-12 as the favorite and 9-8 as the underdog. So far, they have a series record of 7-5-1 this season.
When the Rangers win, they do so by an average of 3.9 runs per game, but when they lose, they lose by an average of 3.3 runs per game. Their overall run line record is 18-24, with an 8-11 mark at home and a 10-13 mark on the road. As the favorite, they are just 8-17 against the run line, but as the underdog, they are 10-7.
When the Texas Rangers played the Oakland Athletics, the combined run total was 23, well over the 8.0 over/under line. In the other three games, the combined run total was 4, 6, and 5, all well under the over/under lines of 10.5, 9.5, and 8.5, respectively. Overall, the Rangers have gone over the over/under line in 18 of their 41 games, and the average over/under line in their games has been 9 runs.
Michael Lorenzen Gets The Start For The Rangers
Michael Lorenzen and the Rangers are at home for their matchup against the Guardians, and Lorenzen has started the season with a 1-1 record. He picked up a win in his first start against the Braves, but has taken a loss in each of his last two outings. Lorenzen has given up a total of 11 hits and 6 earned runs in 12 innings of work.
Rangers Offense Breakdown
Over the past six games, Marcus Semien has been on fire for the Rangers, going 13/26 with two homers and seven RBIs. This has helped him move into the team’s 2nd spot in RBIs (29) and 2nd in home runs (7). Adolis Garcia is right behind him in both categories, with 31 RBIs and eight homers. Garcia is batting .253 for the season, while Semien comes in at .285.
As a team, the Rangers are 7th in scoring at 4.9 runs per game, and they have been even better on the road, averaging 5.3 runs per contest. Overall, they are 4th in team batting average (.255) and 4th in on-base percentage. Currently, Texas has three players on notable hitting streaks: Corey Seager (3 games), Jonah Heim (4 games), and Ezequiel Duran (5 games).
Guardians vs Rangers Prediction
The best bet in this Guardians vs. Rangers matchup is to take the Rangers on the money line at -118. We have the Rangers winning this one by a score of 6-5, and with the payout, we like this as a better option than taking the over or under.
Looking at the starting pitchers, our projections have Michael Lorenzen picking up five strikeouts compared to Tanner Bibee with six. However, Lorenzen has a better chance of getting the win and is projected to give up fewer runs than Bibee.
All odds are courtesy of Action247 Sportsbook. Good luck!!
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Last updated:May 13, 2024 Guardians, Rangers