Tuesdays MLB Tips

Atlanta has played much better since current manager, Snitker, took the reins. Atlanta is 17-22, including current runs of 10-8 and 8-4, after a terrible 9-28 start. Atlanta continues to struggle on this field with an 11-30 record in no small part because of a .634 OPS on this field which is 29th in MLB and over 100 points lower than the MLB home average of .743 OPS. Handing the ball to Wisler will not solve those Atlanta woes on this field. For, Wisler is 1-5 from this mound with a 4.45 ERA. In his most recent 5 outings, Wisler is 0-3 with a 4.60 ERA.

With the 8-3 victory over Atlanta on this field last night, Cleveland has now recorded 10 straight wins. There was a concern last night that they may have a letdown following (3) 3-game sweeps of AL rivals, CWS, Tampa Bay and Detroit, whom they defeated by combined final scores of 59-18. No such letdown occurred and Cleveland has now outscored their last 10 opponents 68-22 for an average margin of 6.8 to 2.2 RPG. In fact, the Tribe has scored 6 or more runs in each of their last 7 games.

With the recent run, Cleveland is now at 45-30 (.600) and is leading the AL Central by 5 games over Kansas City. The .756 YTD OPS and .684 bullpen OPS give Cleveland clear advantages in both of those categories. Kluber will look to continue his excellent run, buoyed by the outstanding starts of other Cleveland members of the rotation, including Bauer, who was dominant last night. In his last 7 starts, Kluber is 5-2, while for the year, he has posted an outstanding road OPS of .558. Kluber is also 10-2 with a 2.30 ERA vs. National League opponents. 

We comfortably make this MLB Pick on the run line, knowing that 18 of 22 Cleveland road wins have come by 2 or more runs, while 39 of 50 Atlanta losses have come by 2 or more runs, a number that is reinforced by the fact that in the last 2 years, 58 of 69 Atlanta losses have come by 2 or more runs.

J.Gavazzi