The Minnesota Twins (18-14) and Cleveland Guardians (14-17) swing into a 3-game series Friday. First pitch at Progressive Field is slated for 7:10 p.m. ET. Let’s analyze FanDuel Sportsbook’s lines around the Twins vs. Guardians odds and make our expert MLB picks and predictions for the best bets.
Season series: First meeting of 2023; Cleveland took 13 of 19 games from Minnesota last season
Minnesota defeated the Chicago White Sox 7-3 in 12 innings Thursday to salvage 1 win in the 3-game set in the Windy City. The Twins are just 2-6 with a .579 OPS over their last 8 road games.
Cleveland is back at home after a 2-4 road trip at the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees. The Guardians batted just .215/.283/.301 (.584 OPS) on the trip and are 5-11 with a .597 OPS since April 16.
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Twins at Guardians projected starters
RHP Bailey Ober vs. RHP Peyton Battenfield
Ober (1-0, 1.59 ERA) is making his 3rd start of the season. He’s posted a 1.06 WHIP, 4.0 BB/9 and 7.9 K/9 through 11 1/3 IP.
- Has gone 5 2/3 innings with 1 ER in each of his 2 starts this season
- Owns a 3.66 ERA and 1.14 WHIP across 33 career games (all starts)
Battenfield (0-2, 4.67 ERA) is lined up for his 4th start. He has a 1.56 WHIP, 5.7 BB/9 and 7.3 K/9 through 17 1/3 IP across 3 starts and 1 relief appearance.
- Last pitched on Sunday out of the bullpen: 2 IP, 3 ER, 3 H, 4 BB and 2 K at the Boston Red Sox
- Last start was April 25: 4 2/3 IP, 4 ER, 6 H, 4 BB, 4 K vs. Colorado Rockies
- Is a 25-year-old rookie who has registered a 2.99 ERA in 65 career minor league games
- Has thus far struggled against left-handed batters (.880 OPS allowed) and is facing a Twins club that generates more plate appearances from that side than league average
Twins at Guardians odds
Provided by FanDuel Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 7:24 a.m. ET.
- Moneyline: Twins -126 (bet $126 to win $100) | Guardians +108 (bet $100 to win $108)
- Run line (RL)/Against the spread (ATS): Twins -1.5 (+134) | Guardians +1.5 (-162)
- Over/Under (O/U): 8.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
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Twins at Guardians picks and predictions
Prediction
Twins 6, Guardians 5
Moneyline
Too much gray area in the mound match-up and the incoming records for both sides are weighted a bit too strongly in the win column. PASS.
Run line/Against the spread
The best value in this series opener is on the total. PASS.
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Over/Under
Both clubs have had an easy strength of schedule for pitchers so far, and we can expect some backpedaling in pitching numbers. There is plenty of fade lean in this particular pitching match-up and with a Cleveland bullpen that has thus far skated by with a .268 batting average on balls in play. Its Minnesota counterpart has a day more use and fatigue after Thursday’s 12-inning contest.
Battenfield is coming off 97 pitches in his last. Ober likely gets overrated by a small-sample, 56-inning campaign a year ago that saw generous rates around the margins (.277 BABIP, 4.8% HR/fly balls) prop up a 3.21 ERA.
Battenfield vs. Minnesota’s lefty bats could be problematic from the outset and help the Twins set an early tone for the series. The offenses bring enough power (Twins) and speed (Cleveland) to the park every day to hold their end of the bargain in an OVER 8.5 (-110).
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