Certainly, a case can be made that the Cleveland Guardians are one of the biggest surprises in the first half of the 2024 season. Cleveland opened a 6-game lead in the American League Central Division over the Minnesota Twins. Cleveland is showing good balance. However, their starting pitching has proven to be a baseball-betting odds weakness. Still, the Guardians have the best bullpen in baseball. In turn, it has offset the starting pitching and could prove to be the catalyst for a strong playoff run.
2024 Cleveland Guardians
| Cleveland Guardians World Series Championship Odds | +1400 |
|---|---|
| Guardians AL Pennant Odds | +700 |
| AL Central Division Odds | -175 |
| Win Total: | 92 |
2024 Cleveland Guardians All-Star Break Overview
In sum, at the approach of the All-Star break, the Cleveland Guardians had a record of 56-32 and were 1st in the American League Central Division. Offensively, Cleveland ranked 5th for runs scored, 12th for batting average, 12th for OPS, 11th for home runs, and 10th for stolen bases. While defensively, Cleveland ranked 8th for earned run average, 9th for WHIP, 5th for strikeouts, 26th for quality starts, 10th for fewest errors, and 1st for bullpen ERA. Cleveland was +1801 on the moneyline and +1058 on the run line.
The sportsbook question that some gamblers have is if Cleveland can maintain the same pace that impressed gamblers in the first half of the season. In turn the Guardians can expect a potential surge by competitors.
2024 Cleveland Guardians Manager
Manager Stephen Vogt was a journeyman MLB player for several teams from 2012 through 2022. He is a rookie manager. Last year, he was a coach with the Seattle Mariners.
2024 Cleveland Guardians Key Players
RHP Shane Bieber is the number one man in the Guardians rotation. Bieber was the 2020 AL Cy Young Award winner and is a two-time AL All-Star. Last year, Bieber was 6-6 with a 2.88 earned run average and 1.23 WHIP. However, Bieber has been on the 60-day IL since his Tommy John surgery in April. Meanwhile, Tanner Bibee picked up the slack with a record of 7-3 and a 3.67 ERA.
RHP Emmanuel Clase is the Guardians Closer. Last year, he saved 44 games in 56 opportunities with a record of 3-9, 3.22 ERA, and 1.16 SHIP. So far, in 2024, Clase has a 4-1 MLB odds record with 27 saves in 30 opportunities. He has a 0.85 ERA and 0.64 WHIP with 39 strikeouts in 42.1 innings of work.
Last year, 3B Jose Ramirez produced 87 runs, 36 doubles, 24 home runs, 80 runs batted in, with a .292 average and .831 OPS. Ramirez is a five-time AL All-Star and a four-time AL Silver Slugger. So far this season, Ramirez has 34 home runs and 76 RBI.
Following three straight playoff seasons from 2016 through 2018, the Cleveland Guardians made it again in 2020 and 2022. Last year was the second losing season in three years for the Guardians, who offered no value to gamblers. In the weak American League Central, better results are expected. Not much was expected by the Guardians on the future market, with little in the way of betting activity. Last season, the Guardians were one of the worst values on the board. Gamblers that did get involved with Cleveland did so in opposition, making a nice profit in the process.