Angels vs. Guardians prediction and odds for Friday, May 12 (Good Opportunity for Anderson)

This week, the LA Angels lost the final two games of a three-game series to the Astros to fall to 20-18, but still hold a half game lead on Houston in the AL West. They are in second in the division as they prepare for a three-game series with the 17-20 Cleveland Guardians. Cleveland just dropped two of three to Detroit and is third in the AL Central.

This is the final series of Cleveland’s three-game homestand and for Game 1 they’ll send Logan Allen to the mound. The lefty, Allen is 1-1 with a 2.70 ERA in three starts this year. Allen will be opposed by another left-hander, Tyler Anderson, who is making his seventh start of the season for the Angels. Anderson is 1-0 with a 5.40 ERA.

Let’s get into the odds for the Angels and Guardians Game 1 in Cleveland. 

Angels vs. Guardians odds, run line and total

Angels vs. Guardians prediction and pick

The Cleveland Guardians have such a left-hand dominant lineup and that really costs them against left-handed pitchers. Now, they will likely only face Anderson for five innings or so, but he will have success against their hitters. The Guardians do not have a fearsome lineup to begin with, but against lefties they are 28th in OPS, .617, and even the switch hitting, Jose Ramirez is only hitting .146. Josh Bell has arguably done the most damage to left-handed pitchers, but only has an .861 OPS. 

The Angels on the other hand are ninth with a .774 OPS against left-handers like Allen. On top of having Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani in the lineup, Hunter Renfroe has 10 home runs to lead the team and has driven in 26 runs. LA finally has something that resembles depth in their lineup and that’s why they are above .500, which has been a rarity for Trout’s career. 

In his three starts, Logan Allen has been very good, especially for a rookie, but he carries a 3.49 FIP with his 2.70 ERA which says that some regression could be coming in the very near future. Both of these teams have strong bullpens, LA is sixth in ERA and Cleveland is third, so this game will likely be decided by what the starters allow and Anderson won’t allow much against Cleveland. I’ll take the Angels as a road underdog.

Follow all Josh Yourish’s bets HERE

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change