Friday’s game between the Toronto Blue Jays and Cleveland Guardians was postponed by a rain delay, leading to a double-header on deck Saturday.
The second game of the double set will feature Ross Stripling on the mound for the Blue Jays and Triston McKenzie on the bump for the Guardians.
The Jays haven’t been able to find any consistency of late, while the Guardians are riding a five-game winning streak entering Saturday,
We’ve got you covered with MLB picks and predictions for the Toronto Blue Jays vs. Cleveland Guardians on Saturday, May 7.
Blue Jays vs Guardians odds
This odds widget represents the best odds available for each betting market from regulated sportsbooks.
For the second game of this doubleheader, the Blue Jays are listed between -130 and -134 favorites, depending on the book. The total has been set at 7.5 across the board.
Use the live odds widget above to track any future line movements right up until first pitch and be sure to check out the full MLB odds before placing your bets.
Blue Jays vs Guardians predictions
Picks made on 5/7/2022 at 10:15 a.m. ET.
Click on each pick to jump to the full analysis.
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Blue Jays vs Guardians game info
• Location: Progressive Field, Cleveland, OH
• Date: Saturday, May 7, 2022
• First pitch: 5:10 p.m. ET
• TV: Sportsnet, Bally Sports
Blue Jays vs Guardians betting preview
Starting pitchers
Ross Stripling (0-0, 3.79 ERA): Stripling has thrown 19 innings across six appearances this season, four of which have been starts. Each of his last four appearances has come in the starting rotation, although he’s pitched past the fourth inning only once as he continues to be stretched out.
Last year with the Blue Jays, he accumulated a 5-7 record with a disappointing 4.80 ERA and 5.21 FIP. He did have strong numbers across his first four seasons with the Dodgers.
Triston McKenzie (1-2, 2.70 ERA): The 6’5” 24-year-old has been lights-out across his first four starts of 2022. He had some struggles a year ago in his first prolonged stay in the majors, as his 4.95 ERA across 120 innings indicates.
He did miss a lot of bats (10.2 K/9 ratio), however, and his 4.42 xERA indicates he may have been a tad unlucky. His hard-hit rate of 45% this season indicates that potential damage is coming in the future.
Weather
Be sure to monitor the gametime conditions with our MLB weather info.
Key injuries
Blue Jays: Teoscar Hernandez RF (Probable), Cavan Biggio 2B (Out), Danny Jansen C (Out), Tyler Saucedo RP (Out), Ryan Borucki RP (Out).
Guardians: Yu Chang SS (Out), James Karinchak RP (Out).
Find our latest MLB injury reports.
Betting trend to know
The Blue Jays are 22-5 in their last 27 Saturday games. Find more MLB betting trends for Blue Jays vs. Guardians
Blue Jays vs Guardians picks and predictions
Our side and total predictions are based upon our analysis of the line and total in this game. Our best bet is our favorite pick across all markets.
Moneyline analysis
The Blue Jays have been money on Saturdays, coming out on the winning end of 22 of their last 27 Saturday games. They get two opportunities to keep that trend moving in the right direction with Saturday’s doubleheader against the Guardians.
Ross Stripling will be on the bump for the Blue Jays, and he’s pitched well enough in 2022 that we expect a strong performance going forward. He was a solid pitcher across four years with the Dodgers before significantly regressing over the last two seasons. He has a low 5% barrel rate across his first four starts, a good indicator that he can limit hard contact against a Guardians lineup that has been mashing righties.
Triston McKenzie is a promising young pitcher for the Guardians and there’s reason to be bullish on him long-term. In this matchup, however, we’re concerned with his propensity to allow hard contact against a Blue Jays lineup that is tied for second in the league in home runs. The lineup has been slumping somewhat of late, but it still has plenty of power and too much hard contact can lead to a big change in the score.
The margin is slim between these two teams. Stripling is showing signs of regaining his early-career form, while McKenzie is possibly due for regression if he keeps allowing hard contact. We’re going to lean toward the Blue Jays in this one.
Prediction: Blue Jays ML (-130 at DraftKings)
Over/Under analysis
It’s expected to be a sleepy day for the bats during this double-header. This first meeting features a low total of 6.5 in what’s expected to be a pitcher's duel between Kevin Gausman and Shane Bieber. This second game also has a low total, being set at 7.5.
We believe both games will be low-scoring. It’s anticipated that the bullpens should be well-rested headed into this second game, as there are two very accomplished starters going in Game 1. Expect both managers to let those starters pitch deep into the game if possible to keep the bullpen arms fresh. Plus, the rainout Friday gave every bullpen arm an added day of rest.
The Guardians’ bats have been hot, but we’re a fan of Stripling’s profile this season as an under-the-radar pitcher. McKenzie has been lights out and while we noted possible reasons for regression, he does strike out a lot of batters. The Guardians have a solid bullpen (3.53 ERA, 1.12 WHIP) to rely on as well.
Prediction: Under 7.5 (-110 at FanDuel)
Best bet
The runs should be hard to come by in both legs of this double-header. We like the Under as our best bet for this second game of the day between the two clubs.
The Blue Jays have a lot of pop in the lineup, but they’ve struggled to take advantage when runners are in scoring position. McKenzie and Stripling are two solid pitchers and we expect this one to stay Under the total.
Pick: Under 7.5 (-110 at FanDuel)
