Rays vs Guardians Prediction & MLB Odds For Sunday, September 15th

Cleveland comes into this AL matchup vs. the Rays looking for a win and moving to 86-64, but they are the slight favorites on the money line, with their odds sitting at -134. The Rays are 4th in the AL East with a record of 73-76, and they have a money line payout of +114. First pitch from Progressive Field is set for 1:40 PM ET, and BSSUN is carrying this one on TV.

Ben Lively is starting for the Guardians, while the Rays are sending Taj Bradley to the mound. The over/under line is currently at 8 runs, and the forecast for Sunday’s matchup in Cleveland is 76 degrees and clear skies.

Betting Odds & Lines for this Game

• Spread: Rays 1.5 (-192) | Guardians -1.5 (+157)
• Total: 8
• MoneyLine: Rays +114 | Guardians -134

All Odds are courtesy of (BetMGM | DraftKings | Fanduel | BetRivers)

Rays vs. Guardians Prediction: Moneyline

Cleveland cruised to an easy 6-1 win over the Rays in the most recent game of this series. The Guardians had a huge 6th inning, scoring three of their six runs. As for the Rays, they scored their only run in the 8th. Heading into the game, the Guardians were favored at -141 on the money line.

The starting pitching matchup for this game featured Joey Cantillo for the Guardians, and he went five innings while giving up just three hits and no earned runs. Cantillo finished the game with six strikeouts but issued one walk. On the other side, Drew Rasmussen only went two innings for the Rays, giving up one hit and no earned runs.

Cleveland’s offense was led by Lane Thomas, Jose Ramirez, and Josh Naylor, as they were the only three Guardians hitters to have more than one hit. Thomas and Ramirez each homered in the game.

Tampa Bay is 73-76 overall and 4th in the AL East, trailing the Yankees by 13 games. The Rays are 19-24 against other AL East teams this year. The Rays are also two games behind the Red Sox for 3rd place in the division.

At home, the Rays are 37-38 this year and 36-38 on the road. As the underdog, the Rays are 38-46 this year compared to 35-30 as the favorite. Tampa Bay has gone 4-6 over their last ten games and are currently winning their series vs. the Guardians, 2-1.

Cleveland is 85-64 overall this season, putting them 1st in the AL Central. They lead the Royals by three games for the top spot in the division. So far, they have gone 27-21 against other teams in the AL Central. The Guardians have had a good year at home, going 44-27, while they are 41-37 on the road.

As the favorite, the Guardians have gone 60-32 this year, and they are 39-20 as the favorite at home. Cleveland’s overall series record is 27-15-5, but they are currently losing the series vs. the Rays 1-2.

Rays vs. Guardians Prediction: Over/Under

The Tampa Bay Rays are on the road to face the Cleveland Guardians today. The O/U line is set at 8 runs, which is right in line with their combined run average of 8.1. The Rays’ O/U record for the season is 65-76, and their average O/U line is also 8 runs. When the O/U line is set at 8 runs, they have a record of 16-21-1. So far this season, 30.9% of their games have had O/U lines set higher than 8 runs, while 43.6% have been set lower. The Rays are currently on a streak of 4 straight unders.

Yandy Diaz has been on fire for the Rays of late, going 10/21 in his last six games with an RBI and a home run. For the season, he is batting .283 and has a team-high 65 RBIs. Diaz is also on a six-game hitting streak. Christopher Morel leads the Rays with 21 homers this season but is batting just .198.

As a team, the Rays are 28th in the league in scoring at just 3.8 runs per game. They also have one of the worst team batting averages in the league at .231. This has led to them being just 24th in home runs and 23rd in slugging percentage.

The Cleveland Guardians are playing host to the Tampa Bay Rays today, with the over/under line set at 8 runs. The Guardians have a combined run average of 8.4 runs per game this season, and their over/under record is 66-72. The average over/under line for their games is also 8 runs, and when the line is set at 8 runs, their record is 13-16-6. So far this season, 46.3% of their games have had over/under lines set at over 8 runs, while 30.2% have had lines set at under 8 runs. Their current under streak is at 3 games.

Over his last five games, Lane Thomas has been on fire for the Guardians, going 8/20 with two homers and nine RBIs. This has pushed his season average up to .270, which is 2nd best on the team. Jose Ramirez and Josh Naylor have been leading the team in homers this season, with Ramirez’s 35 homers being 7th best in the league, and Naylor’s 29 homers being 12th best in the MLB.

As a team, the Guardians are averaging 4.5 runs per game, which is 14th in the league. They have been a better offensive team at home, averaging 4.8 runs per contest. Overall, they are 12th in home runs and are batting .238 as a team. Cleveland comes into the game with a team-wide batting average of .238, which is 15th in the league.

Rays vs. Guardians Prediction: Spread

So far this season, the Rays have a run line record of 77-72, with an average run margin of -0.4 runs per game. They have been a better bet on the run line on the road, where they are 43-31. They have been a better bet on the run line as the underdog, going 53-31.

Taj Bradley gets the start for the Rays today as he faces the Guardians on the road. So far this season, he has made 22 starts and has a record of 6-10 with an ERA of 4.40. Bradley’s WHIP for the season is currently 1.22. In his last outing, he finished with a no-decision, giving up three earned runs in six innings of work. Before that, he had lost three straight starts. Bradley’s ERA for the season is 5.85 on the road compared to 5.59 at home. His strikeout per nine innings figure is 10.05.

The Guardians have been a solid bet on the run line this season, going 75-74 overall. They have been slightly better at home, going 34-37 on the run line. They have been a better bet on the run line on the road, going 41-37. They have been a better bet on the run line as an underdog, going 32-25. They have been a better bet on the run line in games they win, with an average run margin of 3.4 runs.

Ben Lively gets the start for the Guardians today and will be looking to build off his last outing, where he gave up just two hits and no earned runs in two innings of work. In that outing vs. the White Sox, he didn’t give up a homer, but in the three outings before that, he had given up a homer in each one. Lively’s ERA for the season is 4.01, along with a record of 11-9. Looking back, he has made 26 starts, and opponents are batting .236 this year. For the season, Lively has turned in nine quality starts and is averaging 7.23 strikeouts per nine innings.

Rays vs. Guardians Pick: Guardians ML -134

Our prediction for this Rays vs. Guardians matchup is to take the Guardians on the money line at -134. Offensively, we have the Guardians finishing with nine hits compared to the Rays with eight.

Looking at the starting pitchers, Ben Lively is projected to finish with four strikeouts. As for the Rays starter, Taj Bradley, he is projected to finish with six strikeouts.