Trevor Bauer (2-0, 1.80 ERA) and Daniel Norris (1-1, 4.43 ERA) start in the first of a four-game series between the Cleveland Indians (7-13) and the Toronto Blue Jays (10-12) at Progressive Field. Action begins at 7:10 p.m. ET on Thursday, Apr. 30 and can be seen on RSN and STO.
Bauer pitched 6.0 innings in his most recent start, surrendering three runs, striking out two and walking two in an 11-5 defeat to the Royals. Norris went 7.0 innings, surrendering one run, striking out seven and walking three in a 4-2 defeat to the Rays in his last outing.
Toronto is a narrow -110 favorite over Cleveland. The Over/Under (O/U) is sitting at eight runs for this matchup. The Indians have recorded an overall money line of -943 and have shown a weak performance as an underdog this season with a record of 3-5. Cleveland is one of the best in the AL in terms of walks at home, earning an average of 3.6 per game. Crossing over to the pitching staff, opponents have consistently been struck out by the Indians, who lead the AL in strikeouts per game with 9.8.
In games where it is the favorite, Toronto has a 5-5 record and an overall money line of -276. They played solid baseball as the favorite over their last 10 games with a 3-1 record, and a 5-5 record SU. Offensively, they average 5.5 runs per game, which is tops in the AL. The Blue Jays can change the game with one swing of the bat, ranking fourth in the league with 28 home runs.
The Indians have a bad 1-7 record against left-handed starting pitchers on the year, which is what they’ll be facing when Norris takes the mound.
Predictions: SU Winner – TOR, O/U – Over
Notes
The Blue Jays are 1-0 in games that go into extra innings. Meanwhile, the Indians are 0-1 in such matchups.
Having scored one run in their last game, the Blue Jays are going to have to up their game if they want to win this matchup. The Indians have a 3-0 record in games where opponents scored that many runs or fewer.
When they outhit their opponents, the Indians are 5-1. The Blue Jays have a 9-1 record when outhitting opponents.
Ranking first in runs, Toronto has earned 117 this season. Cleveland ranks 21st with 78 runs.
Ranking 14th, Cleveland is in the top half of the league in walks, notching 64 this season. Toronto ranks in the top 10 at seventh with 72.
The Indians are 6-6 in games where they hit one or more home runs. The Blue Jays are 9-4 when they hit at least one homer.
