After an off day the June 21st Guardians at Twins betting matchup kicks off a three game series as part of 8 of the next 11 games against each other that will go a long way in seeing how the AL Central shakes out heading into July. Minnesota currently holds a slight 1-game lead in the division.
Minnesota took two of three in this series at Target Field from May 13th to 15th, winning as -158 and -139 favorites but losing as +119 underdogs. That’s interesting to note as the Twins are -161 on the moneyline for Tuesday’s series opener.
Guardians Rolling Right Now
The day off on Monday was good and bad for Cleveland. On one hand they don’t want to ruin the momentum of a sixth straight series win, but they’re also flying back from a trip to the West Coast so it’s good to have some time to get calibrated.
Another thing a day idle does is give Cleveland a better chance of getting Jose Ramirez back in the lineup for the June 21st Guardians at Twins betting matchup. Ramirez missed the last two games of the series win over the Dodgers with thumb soreness but getting him back in the lineup would be huge as he’s hitting .364 over the past two weeks.
Amed Rosario is also hitting .353 in his past 12 games but did have a 12-game hit streak snapped in going 0-5 against the Dodgers on Sunday. Franmil Reyes should also return to the lineup on Tuesday night for the first time since May 24th, but he’s hitting under .200 this season (.195).
Twins Try to String Together Wins
Cleveland has won 9 of their last 11 games so they do come in with momentum, but at the same time Terry Francona has yet to name a starter for Tuesday’s series opener so the Guardians may have some concerns in that department. Konnor Pilkington had been following Sunday’s starter Shane Bieber in the rotation, but he’s been optioned so Cleveland can bring up a bullpen arm.
Regardless of who is on the mound for Cleveland on Tuesday, the Twins need to string together some wins in this series and it starts with game one. Minnesota has alternated wins and losses the last eight games and haven’t won consecutively since June 11th. That flip-flop trend could be a good thing in regards that the Twins are coming off a 7-1 win over Arizona on Sunday.
The Twins know who their starter is as Joe Ryan (5-3, 2.81) makes his 10th start of the season. Ryan has allowed 2 ER or less in 7 of his 9 starts this season including giving up just 1 ER over 6.0 IP against Cleveland on May 15th. Ryan allowed 4ER over 4.2 IP last Tuesday in his first start since going on the COVID list on May 21st.
Free June 21st Guardians at Twins Betting Pick
78% of the betting public likes Minnesota in this one, mostly because Cleveland hasn’t named a starter. Ryan didn’t look good in his first game back from the COVID list either though and Cleveland has been on a roll lately with six straight series wins.
The Twins won two games against Cleveland earlier this year as big favorites, and they are -161 on Tuesday night. With pitching concerns on both sides and a wind blowing out to center at 15 MPH this looks like a total play.
Free Pick: Over 9
