Game 4 Cleveland Guardians vs. Detroit Tigers Prediction:
It is a do-or-die Game 4 in the American League Divisional Series as the Cleveland Guardians look to save their season on the road against the Detroit Tigers. Game 1 starter Tanner Bibee gets the start.
Bibee has done his best work on the road this season, posting a 3.47 ERA with 9.7 strikeouts to 2.3 walks per nine innings. That ERA rises to 4.15 at home compared to posting a 2.76 ERA on the road.
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The Cleveland Guardians’ lone win in the series also came with Bibee on the mound, supplying 4 2/3 scoreless innings in Game 1. He will be backed up by a bullpen whose 2.57 ERA during the regular season was more than a half point better than any other bullpen in the league.
For the Tigers, things set up to have Reese Olson take the bulk of the innings on the mound, though much of this game will be shouldered by the bullpen. Olson has thrown just 14 1/3 innings with eight runs allowed since coming off of the injured list in the middle of September.
An encouraging sign for the Tigers is that Olson’s five innings pitched in Game 1 was his longest outing since July 10. The bullpen in this series has allowed just three runs across 18 innings for a 1.50 ERA, piggybacking off of having a 2.71 ERA in the bullpen from August 1 until the end of the regular season, which led the American League.
Both teams have been similar on offense this season. The Guardians’ 4.1 runs per game on the road this season ranked 23rd in the league, while the Tigers’ 4.1 runs per game at home also ranked 23rd.
With the way Bibee has rolled this season and the Cleveland Guardians having the top two home run hitters in this game on their side (Jose Ramirez and Josh Naylor combined for 70 home runs and 216 RBI this season), Cleveland will force a Game 5.
MLB Pick: Cleveland Guardians -112
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