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Apple TV+ will host Friday’s matchup between the Minnesota Twins and the Cleveland Guardians with first pitch set for 7:10 p.m. ET at Progressive Field in Cleveland, Ohio. Bailey Ober (1-0, 1.59 ERA) will make his third start of the season for Minnesota, while Zach Plesac’s demotion thrusts Peyton Battenfield (0-2, 4.67) back into Cleveland’s rotation.
Despite dropping two of three to the lowly Chicago White Sox this week, Minnesota enters play on Friday with a commanding grip on the AL Central at 18-14 (although admittedly that probably says more about the state of the AL Central). Even with Kenta Maeda and Tyler Mahle on the shelf with arm trouble, the Twins’ calling card is still their pitching, with Ober and Louie Varland filling in ably to supplement the rock-solid trio of Pablo Lopez, Joe Ryan and Sonny Gray. The offense will need Carlos Correa and Jose Miranda to get it going eventually for Minnesota to make a real run, but this pitching staff should be enough to keep it atop a weak division.
After losing a series to the slumping New York Yankees, the Guardians’ formula of pitching, defense and refusing to strike out is looking a little more rickety than it has in years past. Cal Quantrill and Zach Plesac have backslid this season, and with Aaron Civale and Triston McKenzie on the shelf a usually reliable pitching staff finds itself with a ton of questions behind Shane Bieber. Which is a problem, because this Cleveland team certainly isn’t going to outscore anybody — especially not with Amed Rosario, Andres Gimenez and Josh Naylor all regressing. The Guardians still sit second in the division, but at 14-17 it’s tough to have a lot of confidence right now.
The Twins are currently -125 favorites on the moneyline over at DraftKings Sportsbook, while the Guardians are narrow +105 underdogs. The run total is set at 8.5.
Twins vs. Guardians
Pitchers: Bailey Ober vs. Peyton Battenfield
First pitch: 7:10 p.m. ET
Twins local broadcast: N/A
Guardians local broadcast: N/A
Live stream: Apple TV+ website, Apple TV+ app
Moneyline odds: Twins -125, Guardians +105
To watch Friday’s Twins-Guardians matchup, you’ll need a subscription to Apple TV+, available for $4.99 per month. Occasionally, Apple will offer a free trial, so be sure to check out their website for available deals. Once you have a valid subscription, you can live stream the game on the Apple TV+ website or using the Apple TV+ app.