The Cleveland Guardians and Toronto Blue Jays meet at Rogers Centre on Friday night for the opener of a three-game set with both clubs sending strong pitchers to the mound.
Tanner Bibee has is 4-1 over his last five starts for Cleveland while Chris Bassitt has posted a record of 4-1 over his last seven outings.
Which starter will give their team the upper hand tonight? We’ll discuss that and more in our Guardians vs. Blue Jays MLB picks and predictions for Friday, August 25.
Guardians vs Blue Jays odds
Guardians vs Blue Jays predictions
Both the Guardians and Blue Jays are coming off disappointing series as they dropped two of three games to the Dodgers and Orioles, respectively, so they’ll look to get off to a good start tonight by handing the ball over to some pitchers that have been piling up the wins.
Tanner Bibee was handed his first loss in more than two months during his last outing on August 19 against the Tigers — he had pitched 10 straight games without a defeat, posting a 7-0 record over that span.
Meanwhile, Chris Bassitt held the Reds to two earned runs over six innings to improve to 12-6 on the season, with his 12 wins leading all Toronto pitchers. Like Bibee, Bassitt has had a habit of picking up wins for well over two months now, as he’s gone 7-2 since the start of June.
Other than their winning ways, these pitchers also share another theme in common, and that’s their strong starts to ballgames. Bassitt has allowed a run in the first inning just once in his last seven starts while Bibee has done so three times in his last nine outings.
Whichever way this game goes, I expect a solid performance from both starters, which likely includes a scoreless first inning.
My best bet: 0 runs in first inning (-139 at SIA)
Guardians vs Blue Jays same-game parlay
First Inning Under 0.5 runs (-115)
Guardians Under 3.5 runs (-105)
Belt 2+ total bases (+160)
Along with a scoreless first inning, I’m banking on another slow offensive night from the Guardians, who rank dead last in the MLB in runs scored during August with just 68 in 21 games (3.24 runs per game). Cleveland has scored more than three runs just twice over its last nine outings.
We’ll round out the same-game parlay by banking on Toronto’s Brandon Belt to keep up his hot streak. The slugger has an impressive four home runs and six RBI over his last four games while recording at least four total bases in three of those contests.
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Guardians vs Blue Jays moneyline and Over/Under analysis
The Blue Jays opened as the clear home favorite tonight, getting -154 on the moneyline over the struggling Guardians, who have picked up just eight wins over their last 25 contests.
While Bibee should give Cleveland a fighting shot tonight, the Guardians’ sluggish bats will likely hold them back. The Jays haven’t been world-beaters themselves at the plate this month, but they still boast a trio of batters with at least 10 RBI in August with Daulton Varsho (13 RBI), Belt (11 RBI), and George Springer (10 RBI) each having productive stretches. Meanwhile, the Guardians have only two players with more than seven RBI over that span — Gabriel Arias (10 RBI) and Kole Calhoun (9 RBI).
That lack of depth has been a huge problem for the Guardians, and it’s why we’ll likely see another low-scoring effort for Cleveland, and ultimately another loss.
Tonight’s total was set at 8.5 runs and I think the Under is the clear play here. The Under has cashed in four straight meetings between the clubs and seven of the last eight, while all four of their meetings this season have ended with seven runs or fewer. The Under has also cashed in six of Cleveland’s last eight contests.
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Trend to know
The Under is 7-4 in Cleveland’s last 11 road games. Find more MLB betting trends for Guardians vs. Blue Jays
Guardians vs Blue Jays game info
| Location: | Rogers Centre, Toronto, ON |
| Date: | Friday, August 25, 2023 |
| First pitch: | 7:07 p.m. ET |
| TV: | Bally Sports Great Lakes, Rogers Sportsnet |
Starting pitchers
Tanner Bibee (9-3, 3.01 ERA): Bibee has been a model of consistency since the beginning of July, posting a 1.78 ERA through five starts last month and a 2.63 ERA over four starts in August. The right-hander has held opponents to two earned runs or fewer in eight of his last 10 appearances.
Chris Bassitt (12-6, 3.92 ERA): Bassitt has run into a bit of trouble recently, giving up four runs to the Cubs on August 12 and another four to the Orioles on July 31. Outside of those blips, though, the right-hander has allowed two earned runs or fewer in five of his last seven starts.
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