The Cleveland Guardians and Pittsburgh Pirates are set to start a three-game series at PNC Park on Monday night. The Guardians are coming off a 6-5 loss at Texas on Sunday, which was their fourth straight loss. The Guardians are in a battle with the Minnesota Twins for the American League Central lead. The Pittsburgh Pirates were swept at home to start the second half of the season. Pittsburgh has dropped to 41-52 on the season, which is fourth place in the National League East.
The Cleveland Guardians are favorites in this game. Cleveland is listed at -130 while the Pirates are at +110. The total for this game is 9.5.
Pittsburgh Needing a Pick Me Up
Pittsburgh got off a to a quick start in 2023, but things have gone south quickly. The Pirates lost three straight games, and scored just 3 runs per game during the streak. The Pirates overall have dropped 8 out of their last 8 games. Pittsburgh is 26th in all of Major League Baseball in runs scored, and 20th in batting average. Andrew McCutchen is expected to be back after spending time in the injured list.
The pitching for Pittsburgh has also struggled, but been better. The Pirates are 17th in team earned run average, and actually have had numerous quality starts. The Pirates 39 quality starts is tied for 9th in Major League Baseball. Opponents are hitting .252 against Pirates pitching.
The Pirates are slated to throw Quinn Prester in this game. The 22-year-old righthander will be making his Major League debut.
Cleveland Trying to Stop the Bleeding
The Guardians had a lead late in the game on Sunday, but Josh Jung and the Rangers scored four runs in the 8th to win the game. Cleveland has been solid pitching-wise, with a team-earned run average of 3.89. The Guardians are seeing opponents hit just .245 against them on the season.
Offensively has been the issue. The Guardians are one of the worst offensive teams in the game. Cleveland is 27th in runs scored, and 27th in slugging. The top threats on the offensive side for Cleveland this season have been Josh Naylor and Jose Ramirez. Naylor leads the team with a .308 average and 66 runs batted in, while Ramirez has a team-high 14 homeruns.
Xzavion Curry will throw for Cleveland. The 24-year-old has made two career starts. Curry, in his career has thrown 56.2 innings, and struck out 35 batters, walking 16. He pitched out of the bullpen on Saturday at Texas.
Wild Game in Pittsburgh
Despite both pitcher throwing a youngster, look for this game to be a wild one. Both teams are going to score a ton of runs here. This game is going to go OVER the total. In the end, taking Cleveland is the bet to make. The better bullpen wins. Guardians and the over here. Take Cleveland -130 over Pittsburgh on Monday.
