That was not how Tigers fans were envisioning their return to the ALDS. Detroit’s “chaos” approach to postseason pitching failed miserably in Game 1, with opener Tyler Holton not recording a single out in what eventually became a five-run first inning for the Guardians. Woof.
Fortunately for the Tigers, chaos won’t be necessary for Game 2. Tarik Skubal will take the mound looking to even up the series. Let’s break it all down from a DraftKings Sportsbook perspective.
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Detroit Tigers at Cleveland Guardians
First 5: Under 2.5 (+135)
After watching the Tigers’ first three contests of this postseason run, it’s just difficult to imagine many runs being scored in Game 2 of their ALDS series against the Guardians — especially in the early innings. Detroit was shutout in Game 1 by Tanner Bibee and a collection of Cleveland relievers, and while Matthew Boyd doesn’t exactly strike fear into the hearts of men in the year 2024, he’s got a couple of things working in his favor on Monday. One, he was quite good during the regular season, registering a 2.72 ERA and a 3.10 xERA with a 27.7% strikeout rate across eight starts. Two, he’s left-handed. The Tigers were never a potent offense, but they were particularly underwhelming versus southpaws, with a .132 ISO and a .289 wOBA. This is what happens when your two best bats — Riley Greene and Kerry Carpenter — are both lefties.
It’s not like I’m projecting the Guardians to be lighting up the scoreboard, either. Cleveland was actually quite good in matchups with left-handed pitching in 2024, yet there aren’t a lot of LHPs like Tarik Skubal. There’s a case to be made that Skubal was the most valuable pitcher in baseball this past season, as he was the ultimate blend of volume and efficiency. To wit, the 27-year-old was one of only nine pitchers to throw over 190 innings. He also led all qualified starters with a 2.70 xERA and 228 strikeouts. I assume Skubal will do his part to keep this game under the number.
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All views expressed are my own. I am an employee of DraftKings and am ineligible to play in public DFS or DKSB contests.
