The Cleveland Indians take on the Detroit Tigers tonight in Major League Baseball action. The game is scheduled for a 7:08 p.m. start time and it will be televised nationally on MLB.tv and locally in both markets. The odds for the game currently have the Tigers favored at home to get a victory.
Detroit still sits atop the American League Central Division with their 6-4 record. They've won four of their five games at Comerica Park, but tonight's game could be a bit odd. Last night's game was postponed because of snow and horrendous conditions, but the teams will give it a go tonight.
When they do take to the field, the Tigers are going to send out Anibal Sanchez to the hill. He hasn't earned a decision yet in his two starts to the season, but has only allowed three earned runs in his two games. The opener was a four-inning start that was cut short due to a 45-minute rain delay against Baltimore. The second start of the season saw the Tigers rally to beat the Dodgers.
In the last few years Sanchez has a 4-1 record against the Indians in seven starts. He's struck out 38 Cleveland batters in 45 innings of work and has allowed them only 11 earned runs in that time. Current Indian hitters have a .261 average against the Detroit righty in 157 plate appearances.
Cleveland is going to send Zach McAllister to the mound tonight. He's 1-0 with a 2.31 ERA to this point in the season. He earned a no decision against Oakland but beat San Diego in his last start, which went 7 2/3 innings where he scattered five hits and struck out seven. In the past three years he has made six starts against the Tigers but compiled an 0-2 record with an ERA of 4.85 in that time. He has allowed Detroit hitters a lifetime .375 average against him in 72 plate appearances. Nobody has homered against him. McAllister recorded a 2.04 ERA over his first three starts versus Detroit prior to going 0-2 with a 9.00 ERA over three matchups last season.
The Indians are looking to get their offense back in the right direction. Their top four hitters went just 2 for 15 against the White Sox in their last game. Asdrubal Cabrera, Nick Swisher, Jason Kipnis and Carlos Santana are the top hitters in the Cleveland lineup but have been struggling so far this season.
Miguel Cabrera is hitting just .225 on the season and went just 1-of-12 against the Padres in that series. Against Cleveland last season he drove in 20 runs in 17 games. Victor Marinez has three doubles off of McAllister and has a .367 career average in 46 games against Cleveland.
Detroit is tough to beat at home. With Cleveland's struggles at the plate, we like the Tigers to get the win tonight.
Free Pick: Detroit 6, Cleveland 3
Handicapping Tips: Baseball Correlations
Steve Fezzik from Pregame.com gives some handicapping tips for betting runlines and correlated parlays in major league baseball.
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