Cleveland, OH
Baltimore Orioles vs. Cleveland Guardians prediction, pick for MLB on Friday 4/17/26
Brendan O’Sullivan dives into his pick and prediction for the Baltimore Orioles vs. Cleveland Guardians game on Friday, April 17.
The Orioles and Guardians play the second game of their four-game series on Friday, April 17.
Cleveland is a -143 moneyline favorite, while Baltimore is +119 on DraftKings Sportsbook. The game total is set at over/under eight runs.
Let’s get into a pick and prediction for this Orioles vs. Guardians game.
Orioles vs. Guardians prediction, preview
The Orioles had won six of seven games, seemingly finding their footing in the early portion of the season. Then, they lost two straight to the Diamondbacks, returning back to .500 heading into the weekend series. Baltimore hits the road for a four-game set against the Guardians, who have also struggled with consistency.
Cleveland is not much better, with mediocre batting and pitching. There are standout names on the roster such as Jose Ramirez, Steven Kwan and rookie Chase DeLauter, but they’re not carrying the offense enough.
The pitching is hit spotty, depending on who’s starting that day. Gavin Williams and Joey Cantillo are standouts thus far, but the rest of the rotation is unreliable. Neither of these pitchers are on the mound on Friday, putting the Guardians in danger of an offensive explosion.
Tanner Bibee is starting for the Guardians in game two of the series. He has a 6.38 ERA across four starts, pitching no further than 5.0 innings in an outing. Despite pitching the second fewest innings of the rotation, Bibee has by far the most hits allowed. Opposing teams are batting .316 against the right hander.
Despite this, the Orioles don’t have the pitching advantage. Chris Bassitt will toe the rubber for his fourth start of the season as he holds a 9.00 ERA across 11.0 innings. He hasn’t lasted more than 4.2 innings and has allowed at least six hits in each outing.
Between these two struggling pitchers, offenses may be on fire. That said, both teams have mediocre offense thus far.
Orioles vs. Guardians Pick, Best Bet
Neither of these pitchers gives me much confidence, and with that, it’s hard to bet on either team. A poor start puts a team in a hole sometimes impossible to climb out of. Rather than putting faith into either side, I’m betting against the pitching staffs.
All offense, all the time on Friday. Over. Over. Over.