MLB picks: Tigers vs. Brewers, Indians vs. Royals

A pair of midwestern series are set to wrap up on Wednesday night, but not before offering some prime wagering opportunities. We’ll preview the matchup between the Detroit Tigers and Milwaukee Brewers before moving on to another meeting between the Cleveland Indians and Kansas City Royals.

Detroit Tigers (17-16) at Milwaukee Brewers (16-19), 7:40 p.m. ET

The Tigers took care of business in their series opener with the Brewers on Tuesday night, running away to a 12-1 victory. Now they’ll send out staff ace Spencer Turnbull (3-2, 2.97 ERA) as they look for the two-game sweep at Miller Park, once again as live underdogs.

Turnbull, fresh off 5 2/3 innings of shutout baseball against the Chicago Cubs last Tuesday, goes toe-to-toe with a Milwaukee lineup that’s 29th in runs per game this season (3.89). Backing him up are a solid group of relievers that are fourth in ERA over the last seven days (2.14).

Countering for the Brewers is Adrian Houser, who has a 6.43 ERA over his last four starts. Detroit’s lineup, ninth in runs per game this season (4.97), should pounce on this opportunity. Look for outfielder Victor Reyes, who notched his second four-hit game in less than a week on Tuesday night, to deliver at the dish once more.

MLB pick: Tigers moneyline

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Cleveland Indians (22-14) at Kansas City Royals (14-22), 8:05 p.m. ET

Tuesday night’s clash with the Indians was the stuff of nightmares for Royals fans, as Cleveland (10-1 victors) chased the over-the-hill Matt Harvey after 1 1/3 innings, but not before raising his season ERA to 15.43. Kansas City’s offense was held to one run for the second straight night, this time by Zach Plesac and the Indians bullpen. Bettors should go to the well on Cleveland one more time on Wednesday night.

The Tribe will send out promising prospect Triston McKenzie in this one. After tossing six innings of one-run ball while registering 10 Ks in his debut against the Tigers, McKenzie struggled with his control against the St. Louis Cardinals. He issued three walks, but limited the damage to two runs over four frames. The Royals are 24th in walks this season, so McKenzie should be unafraid to work the corners this evening. He can rely on the Indians’ third-ranked relief corps by ERA (2.56) to close the door behind him.

Jakob Junis counters for Kansas City. Even Cleveland’s modest offense (22nd in runs per game at 4.25) should be able to generate some traffic on the bases against him – Junis’ opponent batting average through 12 2/3 innings this year is .306. Junis was 1-4 against the Indians in six starts last year with a 6.82 ERA. Look for All-Star shortstop Francisco Lindor to lead the charge – he’s 16-for-32 (.500) all-time against Junis with four homers and 12 RBI.

MLB pick: Indians run line