Minnesota vs Cleveland Odds, Betting Lines, and Probable Pitchers (Sep. 7)
- Cleveland is a -140 favorite over the Minnesota Twins on Tuesday (September 7th, 6:10 pm ET)
- Aaron Civale (10-2, 3.32 ERA) will take the ball for Cleveland, while the Twins will counter with John Gant (4-9, 3.98 ERA)
- Read below for odds, analysis and a betting prediction
Tuesday’s MLB slate is devoid of afternoon contests with the first game taking place at 6:10 pm ET. That matchup is the second game of a four-game set between division rivals Minnesota and Cleveland, after the Twins took the opener 5-2 on Monday.
The win was the second in as many days for Minnesota, while Cleveland has now dropped three of four. Cleveland is barely clinging to life in the race for the second Wild Card berth, as they sit 8.5 games back of Boston, while the Twins’ playoff hopes vanished quite some time ago.
Twins vs Cleveland Odds
| Team | Moneyline | Runline | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minnesota Twins | +120 | +1.5 (-155) | O 9.5 (+100) |
| Cleveland | -140 | -1.5 (+135) | U 9.5 (-120) |
Odds as of Sept. 6th at DraftKings.
Cleveland opened as a -140 moneyline favorite, in a game that features a total of 9.5. The forecast at Progressive Field is calling for clear skies, 14 mph winds, and a night time temperature of 64 degrees.
Probable Pitchers
Aaron Civale will make his long awaited return for Cleveland, as the right-hander has been out since late June with a sprained finger. At the time of his injury, he was on pace for a 20-win season, and still leads all Cleveland starters in victories and WHIP, while ranking second in WAR.
Aaron Civale, Filth (8th, 9th and 10th Ks). 😷 pic.twitter.com/aiRrsEoKbD
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) June 12, 2021
He’s allowed two runs or less in seven of his 15 starts this season, while winning 10 of his 12 decisions. He made a rehab start last week for AA Akron, and looked sharp striking out six over 5 innings.
Civale defeated the Twins in his only outing against them back in April, despite not having his best stuff. He surrendered eight hits and four runs over 7.2 innings, but that was against a much different lineup than he’ll see on Tuesday.
Gant vs Civale
| 4-9 | Record | 10-2 |
| 3.98 | ERA | 3.32 |
| 1.47 | WHIP | 1.06 |
| .223 | OBA | .229 |
| 1.3 | SO/W Ratio | 3.5 |
Minnesota were big sellers leading up to the trade deadline, and its offense over the second half of the season has suffered. The Twins have scored three runs or less in seven of their past 11 games, and posted season-lows in batting average, slugging percentage, and OPS over the month of August.
Minny will counter with John Gant, who’s still looking for his first victory since joining the team at the deadline. He’s 0-3 over 10 appearances, coughing up 10 runs in 12.1 innings in his only three starts.
Final line for John Gant tonight:
5.0 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 5 K
89 pitches, 57 strikes (64%)#MNTwins pic.twitter.com/etZpRkHFyO— Twins Daily (@twinsdaily) September 1, 2021
Last time out, he had his best outing as a Twin, allowing two runs, while striking out five, in a 3-1 loss to the Chicago Cubs.
Batting Average vs Starting Pitchers
| Twins Batters | Batting Average vs Civale | Cleveland Batters | Batting Average vs Gant |
|---|---|---|---|
| Luis Arraez | .167 | Yu Chang | .000 |
| Williams Astudillo | .400 | Oscar Mercado | .000 |
| Byron Buxton | .333 | Harold Ramirez | .500 |
| Jake Cave | .500 | Jose Ramirez | .000 |
| Josh Donaldson | .000 | Franmil Reyes | .000 |
| Max Kepler | .273 | Amed Rosario | .000 |
| Jorge Polanco | .182 | Myles Straw | .000 |
| Andrelton Simmons | .000 | — | — |
He’s never started a game against Cleveland, but he has faced them a couple times as a reliever. Active Cleveland hitters are just 1-for-15 lifetime against him, with Harold Ramirez the only player to register a hit.
https://twitter.com/justgroc/status/1435020573617315851
The Cleveland bats however, have shown plenty of pop lately. They’ve homered in a franchise-record 20 straight contests, while Franmil Reyes has gone yard in three consecutive games.
Twins vs Cleveland Pick
Despite Cleveland’s power surge, six of its past 10 games have gone under the total, including three of its past four against Minnesota.
Standard 5-3-5 double play. Amazing. @ticasino X #MNTwins pic.twitter.com/wdq2FJBDpZ
— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) September 6, 2021
Civale starting bodes well for the under, and even if he leaves a bit earlier than usual, Cleveland’s bullpen is well positioned to silence the Twins. Cleveland relievers rank fourth in all of MLB in xFIP, and seventh in K/9.
Gant, although winless, has pitched better than his record suggests. He’s holding enemy hitters to a .218 batting average and boasts a 1.10 WHIP as a Twin.
Eight of the past 10 Twins games have failed to hit the over, and this one could fail to live up to offensive expectations as well.
Pick: Under 9.5 (-120)
As SBD's resident Swiss Army Knife, Chris covers virtually every sport including NFL, PGA, NBA, MLB, NCAAB, NCAAF and the Olympics. A true grinder, he'd rather pick off small edges in the player props market than swing for the fences with a 5-leg parlay.
