Mariners vs Guardians Series Odds: Cleveland Small Favorites in Opener
Mariners With Huge Lead in AL West
It’s a battle of first-place teams, as the Seattle Mariners (43-31) visit the first-place Cleveland Guardians (44-25) starting Tuesday for a three-game series. Seattle holds a massive 8.5-game lead over the Texas Rangers in the AL West.
Cleveland has built a 5.0 game advantage over Kansas City in the AL Central. A big reason for Cleveland’s early success is its stellar 21-8 record at home. The Guardians have the fewest home losses of any baseball team in the league.
The Mariners vs Guardians series odds have Cleveland -110 with a total of 8 in the opening game. Bryce Miller and Triston McKenzie are the scheduled starters.
The Mariners are way down at No. 28 in team batting average, hitting just .221. Seattle is No. 7 in home runs with 81, which has been a huge help. Still, the Mariners are scoring just 3.9 runs per game, which has them tied for No. 24.
Seattle is No. 5 in team ERA. The starters are doing a little better than the bullpen, especially on the road where Seattle struggles a bit. The Mariners have 22 saves and eight blown saves, but just eight saves and six blown saves on the road.
The Guardians are No. 16 in team batting average and No. 12 in home runs. As a result, Cleveland is scoring 4.9 runs per game, which ties them for No. 4 in MLB. Cleveland is scoring at the same pace as the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Cleveland is No. 7 in team ERA and the Guardian bullpen has been one of the best in baseball. The Cleveland relievers have a 2.37 ERA and have saved 25 MLB games in 34 opportunities.
Mariners vs Guardians 
Day/Time:
Location: Progressive Field, Cleveland, Ohio
Tuesday’s Game
The MLB odds might be a little bit light on Cleveland in the opener. Seattle’s record is impressive, but the Mariners are 27-12 at home and 16-19 on the road.
That’s not ideal against a team that plays as well as the Guardians at home. There isn’t a huge difference between the two teams.
- Seattle’s MLB odds to win the World Series are +1600. Cleveland is +1800, so the teams are fairly even. However, the home team should get a decent edge when these teams meet.
Miller is 5-5 with a 3.48 ERA, but he’s just 1-3 on the road with a 5.94 ERA. Seattle is 8-6 when Miller starts and 2-4 when he starts on the road. Those are fairly significant differences.
McKenzie is 3-3 with a 4.10 ERA and Cleveland is 10-3 when he starts. He hasn’t been that effective his last three starts, but the Guardians have won each game. The Guardians are 7-1 when McKenzie starts at home, so Cleveland -110 should be one of your MLB picks today.
Wednesday’s Game
The Mariners vs Guardians series odds are showing Bryan Woo and Tanner Bibee as the scheduled starters for Wednesday. Woo has been brilliant going 3-0 with a 1.07 ERA and the Mariners have won all six games he’s started. He’s allowed zero runs in four of his six starts this season.
Bibee is 4-2 with a 3.94 ERA and the Guardians are 11-3 when he starts this season. His road numbers are a little better and Cleveland is 5-2 when he starts at home and 6-1 when he starts on the road. Impressive, but not quite at the same level as Woo.
The game should be pretty close to even here. Despite how well Woo has pitched, he’s going to be getting overvalued real soon, if not here.
You can give Seattle the edge in starting pitchers, but overall team strength has to go to the Guardians at home. Cleveland is worth a stab if you can get them as an underdog.
Thursday’s Game
The Mariners vs Guardians series odds are expecting Luis Castillo and Logan Allen on the mound to wrap up the series. Castillo is 6-7 on the season with a 3.43 ERA.
After a rough start to the MLB season, Castillo has settled in pretty nicely. Seattle has won five of his last seven starts and is 8-7 on the year when he takes the mound.
Allen is 7-3 on the season despite an ugly 5.30 ERA on the season. The MLB box scores show Allen has been solid in four of his last starts, but absolutely brutal twice. The Guardians are 3-2 when he pitches at home, although his home ERA is 7.33.
The problem with Allen isn’t that he’s bad, it’s that he’s inconsistent, which is the biggest for any pitcher when it comes to betting.
You don’t know if you’re going to get the Allen who allowed three runs over his last two starts or the Allen who allowed seven runs in 1 2/3 innings that start before that.
You know what you’re going to get from Castillo and he could be worth backing at close to even money in this one.
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