Texas Rangers at Cleveland Indians 5/1/2018 Free MLB Parlay

Tuesday, May 1, 2018

Progressive Field

Get todays MLB odds and lines on this game.

Probable Pitchers: Doug Fister vs. Mike Clevinger

Two teams stuck in neutral will be vying for wins this week when the Texas Rangers head to Cleveland to take on the Indians.

Cleveland opened this season with high hopes as the overwhelming Central Division favorites. But at just 14-12 they have been a disappointment. Fortunately for The Tribe, the rest of their division has been pathetic, with 11-15 Detroit actually sitting in second place.

Texas was a long shot to contend in the American League West. But injuries have sabotaged any hope they had of getting off to a hot start and they are already eight games back of Houston through one month of the season.

Tuesday’s game features Doug Fister taking on Mike Clevinger in the pitching matchup.

Fister has been his typical mediocre self, patching together two wins in four starts with a respectable 3.93 ERA. However, he has not been the least big efficient in his outings, failing to make it into the sixth inning in any of his starts. Despite running up pitch counts, Fister has just 16 strikeout in his 18 innings of work.

Clevinger has been a bright spot for the Indians so far this season. He has just a 2.56 ERA and hurled a complete game shutout on April 21 in Baltimore. Clevinger has yielded just a .288 on-base percentage. He is coming off a home loss to Seattle. But he’s been extremely solid to this point.

Valuable Texas Rangers Betting Trends

Rangers are 4-1 in their last 5 road games vs. a team with a winning record.

Rangers are 4-1 in their last 5 road games vs. a right-handed starter.

Rangers are 4-1 in their last 5 road games vs. a team with a winning home record.

Rangers are 5-2 in their last 7 vs. American League Central.

Rangers are 7-3 in their last 10 during game 2 of a series.

Rangers are 10-23 in their last 33 games on grass.

Important Cleveland Indians Betting Trends

Indians are 22-8 in their last 30 during game 2 of a series.

Indians are 26-10 in their last 36 home games vs. a right-handed starter.

Indians are 49-19 in their last 68 overall.

Indians are 41-16 in their last 57 home games.

Indians are 46-20 in their last 66 games vs. a right-handed starter.

Indians are 10-2 in Clevingers last 12 starts.

Indians are 7-2 in Clevingers last 9 home starts.

Key Texas Rangers Injuries

04/25/18 3B Adrian Beltre Hamstring 10-day DL (04/25)
04/22/18 CF Carlos Tocci Hip 10-day DL (04/22)
04/16/18 P Tim Lincecum Blister 60-day DL (03/26)
04/13/18 SS Elvis Andrus Elbow 10-day DL (04/12)
04/10/18 2B Rougned Odor Hamstring 10-day DL (04/10)
04/02/18 P Ricardo Rodriguez Elbow 60-day DL (04/02)
03/30/18 P Joe Palumbo Elbow 60-day DL (02/23)
03/26/18 P Clayton Blackburn Elbow 60-day DL (03/19)
03/26/18 P Ronald Herrera Shoulder 60-day DL (03/21)

Key Cleveland Indians Injuries

04/26/18 P Andrew Miller Hamstring 10-day DL (04/26)
04/08/18 RF Lonnie Chisenhall Calf 10-day DL (04/08)
03/26/18 P Cody Anderson Elbow 60-day DL (02/25)
03/26/18 P Danny Salazar Shoulder 10-day DL (03/26)
03/26/18 3B Giovanny Urshela Hamstring 10-day DL (03/26)
03/26/18 P Ryan Merritt Knee 10-day DL (03/26)

Player Spotlight

Joey Gallo is doing what he can for this team. He’s only batting .224 – which is actually an improvement from his career .199 average. But Gallo leads the team in home runs with eight and his 19 RBIs are the most of anyone currently in the lineup. Gallo only has 141 career hits and 56 of those are home runs. He is one of the few guys in this Rangers lineup that can impact the game with one swing.

Player Spotlight

Michael Brantley has been on fire since joining the squad on April 6. Brantley is hitting .345 on the season and enters this series with a five-game hitting streak and a healthy 18-for-48 over the last two weeks. Brantley is also hitting .333 in his career against Doug Fister (11-for-33).

Who will win tonight's Rangers/Indians MLB game?

I do think that Cleveland is an overvalued MLB entity right now. They have the benefit of playing in the worst division in baseball, so that helps gloss over some of their own weaknesses. But this team has had negative value for bettors. That said, Texas is the shell of itself right now. Without Adrian Beltre, Elvis Andrus and Rougned Odor this team is rudderless and getting replacement-level production from their infield.

Fister should be able to hold his own against this light-hitting Indians lineup. But the Texas bullpen has been overworked and ineffective. I think the Indians will be able to grind down Fister and then take control of this one late. 

Robert's Pick: Take Cleveland

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