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MLB Betting – Detroit vs. Cleveland Preview & Pick

Shea weighs in with his MLB Free Pick for Tuesday. It’s the Detroit Tigers vs. Cleveland Indians matching up at Progressive Field. The Indians are currently 135-moneyline favorites…

MLB Betting – Tigers vs Indians Preview & Pick

With a big series against the second-place Cleveland Indians, the Detroit Tigers can take a stranglehold on the American League Central this week.

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Bet On Baseball – Tigers vs. Indians Preview & Pick
Date: Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Venue: Progressive Field, Cleveland, OH
Broadcast: FSD, STO
Detroit Tigers at Cleveland Indians Betting Lines from Bodog.com
Money Line: Indians -126
Over/Under: 7.5
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Detroit Tigers (61-53)
Doug Fister (4-12, 3.29)

They’ll try to do so with their new toy on Tuesday as freshly acquired Doug Fister takes the hill.

So far, so good for Fister, who came over in a trade-deadline deal with the Seattle Mariners. He won his first start as a Tiger, holding the Texas Rangers to three runs, two earned, over seven innings. It was a signature Fister performance in that he had zero walks and zero strikeouts. He ain’t overpowering but he throws strikes.

As his record indicates, Fister has gotten horrific run support in his career because he played for some bad Seattle teams. He’s 0-2 in four starts against Cleveland but has a 3.16 lifetime ERA against the Tribe.

Cleveland Indians (56-56)
Justin Masterson (9-7, 2.63)

As the Indians desperately try to stay alive in the AL Central, they turn to their pseudo-ace on Tuesday. Does Justin Masterson deserve that status yet? He isn’t a household name but he’s quietly been excellent in 2011, keeping the ball down while also posting a solid strikeout rate and not walking too many guys. If he had more victories, he’d be in the Cy Young discussion. [dfads params=’groups=10&limit=1&return_javascript=0′]

That said, Masterson has a poor track record against the Tigers. He’s winless over five career starts against them and has a 4.76 lifetime ERA versus Detroit. Wanna take a wild guess as to which guys hit Masterson hard?

Yep, it’s Miguel Cabrera and Victor Martinez. Miggy bats .417 with a homer over 12 at-bats versus Masterson and Martinez tags him at a .455 clip over 11 at-bats.

MLB Trends

DET are 9-3 in their last 12 Tue. games.
Over is 35-16-5 in DET last 56 Tue. games.
CLE are 2-9 in their last 11 home games.
Under is 6-2 in CLE last 8 Tue. games.
Under is 18-7-1 in CLE last 26 home games.
DET are 0-11 in the last 11 meetings in Cleveland.
DET are 2-7 in the last 9 meetings.

MLB Free pick:

It feels to me like the baseball gods are ready to pay back Poor Fister, who has a 13-30 career record despite a very respectable 3.79 ERA. He got the “W” his first time out with Detroit and I think he’s due for another on Tuesday.

Masterson has been great this year but hasn’t beaten the Tigers in two tries. They have his number.

Look for Cabrera and V-Mart to lead Detroit over Cleveland.

Tigers vs Indians prediction: Tigers 5, Indians 3

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By Shea Matthews

Shea Matthews the Senior Writer at CP. Lives and breathes sports. He made the transition from athlete to sports journalist at a young age, writing in TV & national papers. Shea applies his knowledge to sports betting + handicapping daily, and shares winning picks with the world.