Putting the mess that is the AL West to the side, we pretty much know who is going to be involved in the American League playoffs. It\u2019s now just a matter of seeding.<\/p>\n
It would take quite the slide for the Red Sox to fall out of the second Wild Card spot, but suddenly, the club\u2019s lost three in a row and five of its last seven contests. That includes Tuesday\u2019s 3-2 loss to the Guardians on Tuesday, a team that is chasing Boston down in the standings.<\/p>\n
Can Cleveland keep the pressure on? Let\u2019s dive into this 7:10 p.m ET matchup and make a couple picks on the DraftKings Sportsbook.<\/p>\n
Guardians vs. Red Sox prediction, preview<\/p>\n
Conversely, the Guardians have been playing their best baseball of the season the past week, as they enter today\u2019s action with a six-game winning streak. They\u2019ve needed every victory, too, the as the White Sox are hot on their heels in the AL Central with the tie-breaker in hand. <\/p>\n
Specific to tonight, Cleveland will turn to Foster Griffin, in what is easily the biggest start of his MLB career. The left-hander has been underwhelming since being acquired by the Guardians at the trade deadline, struggling to a 5.79 ERA across eight outings and 37.1 innings of work. A 3.98 FIP and a .363 opponent BABIP do suggest there\u2019s been a little unluckiness at the helm of these issues, as does the fact that Griffin hasn\u2019t surrendered an opponent home run since all the way back on August 18. Still, regardless of what\u2019s going on under the hood, the former NPB ace needs to be better. With a quality performance on Wednesday evening, Griffin would not only assist Cleveland in holding on to its lead in the division, but he\u2019d likely secure his place as the team\u2019s third starter in a possible Wild Card series next week.<\/p>\n
The stakes are a little different for Sonny Gray, who will toe the rubber opposite Griffin. The veteran\u2019s innings have been monitored throughout September, and it\u2019s almost set-in-stone that Gray will get the ball in either Game 1 or Game 2 of a Wild Card series \u2014 likely in New York against the Yankees. He\u2019s certainly earned it. Yes, the 36-year-old\u2019s 3.83 xERA suggests some good fortune, but Gray\u2019s managed a 2.82 ERA over 163.0 innings in the AL East. That\u2019s difficult to fake. His formula for success is also incredibly simple: Gray combines a 77th percentile walk rate (6.8%) with a 74th percentile ground ball rate (46.7%). That means limiting opposing home runs and crooked numbers. That also translates into the sixth-most quality starts in the league (19).<\/p>\n
Tonight will be good tune-up opportunity for Gray. The Guardians are red-hot with their bats the past two weeks, sitting top-six in baseball in that span of time in ISO (.184), wOBA (.343), expected wOBA (.331) and wRC+ (121). Jose Ramirez still isn\u2019t looking like himself, but former No. 1 overall pick Travis Bazzana is doing his part. Since the beginning of September, Bazzana is slashing .298\/.394\/.667 with six home runs and a 194 wRC+. The rookie is turning his season around at exactly the right moment.<\/p>\n
Guardians vs. Red Sox pick, best bet<\/p>\n