Astros (36-27) at Guardians (30-33) Game Preview | Saturday 6/10 6:10 PM. EST.

Game 2 of 3 Against the Houston Astros

3 Things Preview Houston Astros at Cleveland Guardians:

1 – McKenzie jersey day 
Triston McKenzie will be making his second start for the Guardians in the 2023 season and fans will have an opportunity to get a McKenzie jersey as well as it is his jersey giveaway at Progressive tonight. 

2 – 307
Jose Ramirez hit his 307th double on Friday passing Ken Keltner for sixth-most in franchise history. 

3 – Cody Morris update
Manager Terry Francona announced that RHP Cody Morris will be making two relief appearances this Sunday and Wednesday in Columbus.  Morris will only pitch one-inning outings and at that point, the club will determine the next steps.

Guardians Notes

Even with 20 runs scored over the last 2 games the Cleveland Guardians have struggled significantly on the offensive front throughout this season. They currently still rank 29th in MLB with a team OPS of .663, averaging a mere 3.73 runs per game. Our struggles are particularly evident at home, where they have scored just 3.13 runs on average, ranking 29th in the league. In 30 home games, we still possess a team slash line of .234/.302/.359, further highlighting our offensive challenges. As expected, Jose Ramirez has been a bright spot, performing admirably with a .807 OPS, ten home runs, 36 RBI, 34 runs scored, and an impressive 25:23 walk-to-strikeout ratio.

Shifting focus to Triston McKenzie, his lone appearance this season makes it challenging to assess his performance. However, delving into his 2022 Baseball Savant page, he displayed promise, finishing in the 81st percentile for walk percentage. McKenzie relies on a three-pitch arsenal, with each of his pitches thrown at least 17.7 percent of the time last year. In his encounters with the Astros during the previous season, he was victorious twice, pitching 15 innings and allowing only one run on five hits, accompanied by two walks and 11 strikeouts.

Guardians Stats and Insights

GUARDIANS PROBABLE PITCHER – Triston McKenzie

• McKenzie helped his team cover the spread in his only opportunity this season as a starter.
• The right-hander last pitched on Sunday against the Minnesota Twins, throwing five innings without allowing a run.
• This will be McKenzie’s first start this season with his team as the money line favorite.
• McKenzie’s team won in his only start this season.
• The only game started by McKenzie with a total this season hit the under.

GUARDIANS HITTING TRENDS

• Jose Ramirez has a team-best 10 home runs.
• Ramirez’s home runs put him 50th in the majors, and he ranks 33rd in RBI.
• Ramirez has collected a hit in four games in a row. In his last five games, he is hitting .381 with two doubles, four home runs, four walks, and seven RBI.
• Steven Kwan has 15 doubles, a triple, two home runs, and 31 walks while hitting .257.
• Including all major league hitters, Kwan ranks 284th in homers and 172nd in RBI.
• Kwan carries a two-game streak with at least one hit into this contest. During his last five outings, he is batting .182 with a double, two walks, and two RBI.
• Naylor paces the Guardians in runs batted in (45) and has put up a team-best batting average of .277.
• Naylor will look to build on his nine-game hitting in this game. In his last 10 outings, he is batting .450 with seven doubles, a home run, three walks, and 13 RBI.
• Andres Gimenez is hitting .236 with 11 doubles, two triples, three home runs, and 11 walks.

Astros Notes

The Houston Astros need to enhance their performance at the plate, currently ranking 21st in MLB with a team OPS of .713, despite averaging 4.49 runs per game this season. Interestingly, their offensive production has been slightly better on the road, where they sit at 17th place with a .720 road OPS, accompanied by an average of 4.55 runs scored in their 31 road games. Notably, right fielder Kyle Tucker has been excelling with a solid slash line of .271/.343/.440, along with eight home runs, 36 RBI, 25 runs scored, and eight successful steals out of nine attempts.

Unfortunately, J.P. France has experienced a lackluster start to the season, as indicated by his Baseball Savant page, where he ranks in the ninth percentile for chase rate. He relies on a repertoire of five different pitches, with his fastball being utilized 41.2 percent of the time. While he is about to make his first career start against the Guardians, he has demonstrated competence on the road thus far.

Astros Stats and Insights

ASTROS PROBABLE PITCHER – J.P. France

• France (1-1 with a 3.44 ERA and 29 strikeouts in 34 2/3 innings pitched) gets the start for the Astros, his seventh of the season.
• His last appearance was on Sunday against the Los Angeles Angels, when the righty threw seven innings, surrendering one earned run while allowing three hits.
• France will try to last five or more innings for his fourth straight appearance. He’s averaging 5.7 innings per outing.
• In one of his six total appearances this season, he has not given up an earned run.
• The Astros have not been a money-line underdog when France starts this season.
• France’s team is 2-4 over his six starts.
• France’s starts with a set total this season have gone over the run total in three of six contests.

ASTROS HITTING TRENDS

• Bregman is hitting .248 with eight doubles, a triple, nine home runs, and 35 walks while getting on base at a rate of .346.
• Bregman is 60th in home runs and 28th in RBI among all hitters in MLB.
• Kyle Tucker has 13 doubles, eight home runs, and 27 walks while batting .272.
• Tucker is currently 78th in home runs and 28th in RBI in the major leagues.
• Jeremy Pena has 16 doubles, a triple, eight home runs, and 13 walks while hitting .256.
• Mauricio Dubon leads the team in batting average with a high-water mark of .303.

Final Thoughts/Pick

These two teams boast exceptional bullpens, with Cleveland ranking second in the majors with a reliever ERA of 3.12, and Houston following closely in fourth place with a bullpen ERA of 3.28. Both teams have struggled to find success in terms of their batting averages on balls in play throughout the season. The Astros currently are 17th in the league with a team BABIP of .290, while the Guardians ranks 24th with a team BABIP of .281. It’s worth noting that in five of the last seven games played at Progressive Field, the total runs scored have fallen below eight. Therefore, it would be wise to consider taking the UNDER 8 RUNS in this game, especially with the last 2 games hitting way over the total runs line.

Our Pick: Under 8 Runs