Boston Red Sox vs Cleveland Guardians Prediction: Sox to draw the first blood

The Cleveland Guardians are set to visit Boston for a four-game series against the Boston Red Sox. The opening game, scheduled for Marathon Monday in Boston, will showcase a pitching duel between two right-handed pitchers. Tanner Bibee, with a record of 1-0 and an ERA of 5.93, will take the mound for Cleveland, while Boston's Kutter Crawford, boasting a record of 0-0 and an impressive ERA of 0.57, will be his counterpart.

After a weekend series against the Los Angeles Angels, the Boston Red Sox had a mixed bag of results. They suffered a 7-0 loss in the first game but bounced back with a convincing 7-2 win on Saturday. In the final game, they narrowly clinched a 5-4 victory, powered by home runs from Tyler O’Neill, Triston Casas, and Masataka Yoshida.

For Monday’s matchup, the Boston Red Sox will rely on Kutter Crawford as their starting pitcher. So far this season, Crawford has displayed impressive form with a 0.57 ERA and 18 strikeouts across three starts, although he has yet to secure a decision. Throughout his MLB career, Crawford holds a record of 9-15 with a 4.45 ERA.

However, heading into this game, the Boston Red Sox have faced challenges as home favorites after playing the previous day, losing seven of their last eight such games. Additionally, they have failed to cover the run line in each of their last eight home games following a win.

Over the weekend, the Cleveland Guardians faced off against the New York Yankees, experiencing mixed results. They suffered losses in the first two games of the series, with scores of 3-2 and 8-2. However, they bounced back in the Sunday finale with an exhilarating walk-off win in 10 innings, securing an 8-7 victory. Notable performances came from Jose Ramirez, who hit a homer, and Josh Naylor, who contributed two RBI, two hits, and a run.

Taking the mound for the Guardians in Monday's matchup will be Xzavion Curry, marking his season debut. Throughout his career spanning 43 MLB games, including 11 starts, Curry has accumulated a record of 3-5 with a 4.23 ERA and 70 strikeouts in 104.1 innings pitched.

Looking ahead to this game, the Cleveland Guardians have demonstrated resilience as road underdogs, winning each of their last four such games. However, they have struggled to cover the run line in their last nine games following an extra innings win the previous day.

In the upcoming game, I'm favoring the Boston Red Sox to emerge victorious. Crawford has demonstrated consistency in his first three starts, allowing just one earned run across 15.2 innings while managing seven hits and eight walks. Adding to their momentum, the Boston Red Sox's offense has surged in their recent two games, tallying a combined total of 12 runs and securing wins in both outings.

Meanwhile, the Cleveland Guardians avoided a sweep against the New York Yankees on Sunday, albeit facing challenges during the match. However, unless the Cleveland Guardians' pitching performs exceptionally well, I believe the Boston Red Sox hold the upper hand, even in what is expected to be a closely contested, high-scoring game.