Everybody loves a winner and that is why the Cleveland Indians are the MLB betting favorites to defeat the Detroit Tigers tonight at Progressive Field, as we can see below:
Tigers +1½ (-140) 8 (-120) +161
Indians -1½ (+120) 8 (EV) -171
Left-handed Daniel Norris will open for the Tigers, while right-handed Danny Salazar will do likewise for the Indians. Norris delivered when called to by striking out eight Marlins over the course of 5 innings on Wednesday. His left-handedness may come in handy, seeing as how Cleveland ranks in the bottom half of American League teams in OPS versus lefties. As for Salazar, he shutout the Atlanta Braves during seven innings in the victory that closed an amazing month of June for the Tribe. He was named AL Pitcher of the Month after going 5-0 with a 1.91 ERA and 35 strikeouts and 15 walks in five starts.
People who bet on baseball and have way too much time in their hands may have noted that during the recent road trip, the Indians had three consecutive road wins against Detroit, three against Atlanta, and two against Toronto before losing to the Blue Jays on Saturday and Sunday. As fate or luck would have it, starting on April 20th, the Cavaliers won three consecutive games against Detroit (one at home, two on the road), then four straight against Atlanta (two at home, two on the road), and then one versus Toronto. What does that mean? No idea, but it sounds like an interesting bit of information to share with MLB betting fans.
Speaking specifically of the Tigers, the Indians have owned Detroit like OCP in Robocop. Cleveland has beat the Tigers in 9 games by a 60-20 margin, including a 22-8 margin dating back to last weekend’s three-game sweep at Comerica Park. Detroit bounced back with six wins in a row versus Miami and Tampa Bay. The Indians, however, won five more for a record-breaking 14-0 before dropping consecutive games at Toronto. The Tigers may have a bit of the old element of surprise in the fact that Norris, who is making his second start with Detroit has not pitched against Cleveland so far this season.
MLB betting fans should also take into account that Salazar has won his last six decisions and eight out of his last nine. He’s 1-0 versus Detroit this season and 3-4 in his career. However, Miguel Cabrera is 9-for-29 with two homeruns and five RBIs against Salazar. Injury report: J.D. Martinez, Warwick Saupold, and Drew VerHagen are on the disabled list for the Tigers, while Michael Brantley and Roberto Perez are on the DL for the Indians. In summary, even though Cleveland is coming off two straight losses and Detroit has not lost since falling to Cleveland on June 26th, the former remain the favorite of people who bet on baseball to win this one. For example, WPTZ News Channel 5 predicts that it will be Indians 6-Tigers 2.