CLEVELAND — It's an old fashioned Ohio v. Michigan battle in the MLB playoffs.
The No. 2-seeded Guardians will face the No. 6-seeded Detroit Tigers in the American League Division Series . The Tigers swept the No. 3 Houston Astros 2-0 in the best-of-three Wild Card series to advance to play Cleveland.
After a few days of sim games and finding the balance of rest while still remaining sharp, the Guardians have their first playoff opponent set with a trip to the ALCS on the line. In their way: the hottest team in baseball over the last few weeks.
Here are some keys to the series, things to look for, schedules and more.
Guardians-Tigers ALDS preview, stats, keys to the series
This Guardians-Tigers matchup is a battle of AL Central rivals who were both surprise playoff teams in 2024.
The Guardians won the AL Central with 92 wins, which might be enough for Stephen Vogt to win AL Manager of the Year in his first season. The Tigers at one point had a 1% chance of making the playoffs before finishing the regular season 15-5 in their final 20 games to grab one of the six postseason spots.
The Guardians won the season series 7-6, though the Tigers won the run differential 60-50.
Guardians ALDS advantage: Emmanuel Clase, bullpen
It's no secret the Guardians can lean into their league-best bullpen even more in October. And that is Cleveland's biggest potential advantage in this series.
The Guardians' bullpen r anked first in nearly every major category as a group in 2024, and in many cases, it wasn't close.
Emmanuel Clase might garner some Cy Young consideration , and there's an argument that Cade Smith was actually the best Guardians reliever in his rookie season. Then there's Hunter Gaddis , Tim Herrin and Eli Morgan, all of whom had sub-2.00 ERAs. Then there's Andrew Walters and Erik Sabrowski, who don't have as much experience, but neither allowed an earned run after being called up to the big leagues.
Expect the Guardians to lean heavily on those pitchers in the postseason.
The Tigers' bullpen, meanwhile, was solid, but not quite on the same level. Detroit ranked 16th in the league with 3.6 fWAR . The Tigers' combined bullpen ERA of 3.55 ranked fifth, and their 3.84 FIP was 11th. The Tigers often rely on bullpen games, so that group is a crucial unit for both clubs, but it'd be difficult for any team to match the efficacy of the Guardians' relievers for long.
Tigers ALDS advantage: Tarik Skubal
Detroit's rotation is led by Tarik Skubal , who is the favorite to win AL Cy Young unanimously after winning the pitching triple crown in 2024.
Skubal already has one gem this postseason, as he blanked the Astros over six scoreless innings in Game 1 of the Wild Card Series.
He was tremendous in the regular season as well, finishing 18-4 with a 2.39 ERA and 228 strikeouts in 192 innings. Considering he pitched Tuesday, Skubal could either start Saturday's Game 1 on short rest or take the mound for Monday's Game 2. Guardians president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti noted Wednesday that Tanner Bibee will start Game 1 for Cleveland.
Vogt has said repeatedly this season that the Guardians' primary goal when constructing a lineup is to attack the starting pitcher, and that is expected to remain the same in the postseason. Against Skubal, the Guardians have their toughest test yet. Skubal started only one time against Cleveland this season, scattering 10 hits and allowing one earned run in seven innings.
Outside of Skubal, the Tigers could continue to rely on "openers" and bullpen games , utilizing matchups and "pitching chaos" as Detroit has called it. The Guardians, too, could opt to throw a bullpen game depending on Alex Cobb's health.
Regardless, this series is headed for a lot of different pitchers, a lot of lineup shifting late in games, and at least one start from the Cy Young favorite.
Guardians ALDS roster projection
The Guardians won't have to set their ALDS roster until Saturday. We broke down the toughest decisions as they construct the 26-man squad.
Guardians postseason tickets
Guardians ALDS postseason tickets can be purchased at the team's website . The games available for purchase include Games 1, 2 and 5 (if necessary).
Guardians-Tigers ALDS betting odds, prediction
For strictly entertainment purposes only, the Guardians are opening as very slight favorites to win the series, according to the MGM Sportsbook , which as of Wednesday night has Cleveland at -115 to win the ALDS and the Tigers at -105. Those are virtually even odds.
The betting line for Game 1 is Guardians -1.5 runs, and the game has an over-under total of 7.5 runs.
What time is ALDS Game 1?
Game 1 of the Guardians-Tigers ALDS has a first-pitch time of 1:08 p.m. ET. Game 2 is set for 4:08 p.m. ET.
ALDS home away format
The ALDS has a 2-2-1 format, meaning it'll be two games in Cleveland, then two games in Detroit, then one game in Cleveland (if Games 4 and 5 are necessary).
ALDS number of games
The ALDS is a best-of-five game series.
Guardians-Tigers ALDS schedule
The series schedule is as follows:
- Game 1: Saturday, October 5, 1:08 p.m. ET in Cleveland
- Game 2: Monday, October 7, 4:08 p.m. ET in Cleveland
- Game 3: Wednesday, October 9, TBD in Detroit
- Game 4: Thursday, October 10, TBD in Detroit (if necessary)
- Game 5: Saturday, October 12, TBD in Cleveland (if necessary)
Ryan Lewis can be reached at rlewis1@gannett.com. Read more about the Guardians at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/cleveland-guardians. Follow him on Threads at @ByRyanLewis .
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Guardians-Tigers 2024 MLB playoffs ALDS preview, predictions, keys to the series, info
Local News
Comments / 0