Baltimore Orioles vs Cleveland Guardians Prediction, Preview and Odds - 04/17/2026

Game Time: 6:10 pm ET, Friday, April 17, 2026

Venue:  Progressive Field, Cleveland, OH

Where to Watch:  MLB TV

DraftKings:  Moneyline odds:  Orioles +115, Guardians -135; Over/Under:  8 runs

Bet365:  Moneyline odds:  Orioles +115, Guardians -135; Over/Under:  8 runs

BetMGM:  Moneyline odds:  Orioles +115, Guardians -135; Over/Under:  8 runs

Baltimore Orioles:  9-9 (3rd place, AL East)

Cleveland Guardians:  10-9 (2nd place, AL Central)

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Baltimore Orioles:  6-4 last 10

Cleveland Guardians:  5-5 last 10

The Orioles are entering this series off a loss and lost their 3-game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks 2-1 in their last series. They enter this game with a 9-9 record overall and have a road record of 3-3. This is the 2nd game of a 4-game series with the Guardians on Friday with the series opener still to be played on Thursday. Their offense ranks 9th in the MLB with a .727 OPS. Shane Baz is their starting pitcher on Thursday while Chris Bassitt is making his start in this game on Friday. He is 0-2 with a 9.00 ERA this season. His team lost 2 of their last 3 games this season with him making an appearance. In his last MLB regular season appearance, he allowed 1 ER, 0 HR, and 1 BB with 2 SO on 7 hits through 4.2 IP against the San Francisco Giants.

The Guardians are entering this series off a loss and lost their 3-game series against the St Louis Cardinals 2-1 in their last series. They enter this game with a 10-9 record overall and have a home record of 4-2. This is the 2nd game of a 4-game series with the Orioles on Friday with the 1st game of this series still to be played on Thursday. Their offense ranks 14th in the MLB with a .697 OPS. Parker Messick is their starting pitcher on Thursday while Tanner Bibee is making his start in this game on Friday. He is 0-2 with a 6.38 ERA this season. His team lost their last 3 straight games this season with him making an appearance. In his last MLB regular season start, he allowed 8 earned runs, 1 homer, and 1 walk with 4 strikeouts on 11 hits through 4.2 innings pitched against the Atlanta Braves.

The current betting odds have the Guardians listed as a favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. The Guardians have looked good in their games this season with their 10-9 record overall which has them right near the top of the AL Central. They have looked good in their own ballpark too with their 4-2 home record this season. Meanwhile, the Orioles have looked good in their games this season with their 9-9 record overall which has them right in the middle of the AL East. They haven't been a great road team so far with their 3-3 road record this year. Both teams are off series losses, but the Orioles are having a really rough start to the season. Their pitching hasn't been great and they have been dealing with a ton of injuries in the lineup too. They are going to have Bassitt on the mound here and he is off a good season last year, but he has had a terrible start to this season. He is 0-2 with a 9.00 ERA and has been giving up a ton of runs. He was better in his last start with only 1 earned run given up, but he has had some trouble in his other 2 starts with his team losing 2 of his 3 starts this season. The Guardians are going to have a big advantage with their pitching in this one and have one of their best starters on the mound. Bibee is starting for the Guardians and he is off a terrible start in which he gave up 8 earned runs, but he is off a great season and will be looking to bounce back here. He wasn't bad in his first 2 starts of the season either, so he is going to pitch a better game here against a banged up Orioles lineup. The Guardians also have the better bullpen to back him up here. The best way to place a bet here is on the Guardians to win this game. 

Orioles Guardians Prediction:  Our MLB Pick for Friday, April 17, 2026 (6:10 pm ET start time) is Guardians 4 Orioles 1.

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Baltimore Orioles: 175-169 (-18 units) on the moneyline in all games. 118-122 (-16.4 units) on the moneyline vs. good fielding teams - averaging 0.6 errors/game or less. 130-122 (-13.1 units) on the moneyline against right-handed starters. 14-8 UNDER after 6 consecutive games versus interleague opponents.

Cleveland Guardians: 195-160 (+34.1 units) on the moneyline in all games. 77-40 (+19.1 units) on the moneyline as a home favorite of -110 or higher. 137-119 (+13 units) on the moneyline against right-handed starters. 10-5 UNDER after 6 consecutive games versus interleague opponents.

Baltimore Orioles:  R. Mountcastle (1B) Sixty Day IL - Foot Fracture. Y. Hiraldo (RP) Sixty Day IL - Shoulder. T. O'Neill (RF) Seven Day IL - Illness. A. Rutschman (C) Ten Day IL - Ankle. Z. Eflin (SP) Sixty Day IL - Elbow. D. Enns (RP) Fifteen Day IL - Foot. J. Westburg (3B) Sixty Day IL - UCL. A. Kittredge (RP) Fifteen Day IL - Shoulder. H. Kjerstad (LF) Ten Day IL - Hamstring. J. Holliday (2B) Ten Day IL - Finger. K. Akin (RP) Fifteen Day IL - Groin. F. Bautista (RP) Sixty Day IL - Shoulder. C. Selby (SP) Sixty Day IL - Shoulder.

Cleveland Guardians:  G. Arias (SS) Ten Day IL - Hamstring. A. Walters (RP) Fifteen Day IL - Lat.

"Tyler fell behind 2-0 and that put him in a bad count, a bad situation. He tried to get back in the count with the heater and Del Castillo didn't miss it." - Craig Albernaz after his team’s loss against the Diamondbacks in their game on Wednesday. 

"When pitchers are struggling to find it, teams try to exploit it. Walks have been hurting us this year. We've got to get back to pumping the zone. We played a very uninspiring game and have got to get better." - Stephen Vogt after his team’s loss against the Cardinals in their game on Wednesday. 

Taylor Ward (R) DH

Gunnar Henderson (L) SS

Pete Alonso (R) 1B

Johnathan Rodríguez (R) RF

Weston Wilson (R) LF

Jeremiah Jackson (R) 2B

Coby Mayo (R) 3B

Sam Huff (R) C

Blaze Alexander (R) CF

Steven Kwan (L) CF

Chase DeLauter (L) RF

José Ramírez (S) DH

Kyle Manzardo (L) 1B

George Valera (L) LF

Juan Brito (S) 2B

Daniel Schneemann (L) 3B

Bo Naylor (L) C

Brayan Rocchio (S) SS

Batting Average:  Taylor Ward (.301)

Hits:  Taylor Ward (22)

Home Runs:  Gunnar Henderson (6)

RBI:  Jeremiah Jackson (14)

Stolen Bases:  Gunnar Henderson (4)

Wins:  Trevor Rogers (2)

Saves:  Ryan Helsley (5)

ERA:  Rico Garcia (0.00)

Batting Average:  Angel Martínez (.302)

Hits:  Steven Kwan (17)

Home Runs:  Chase DeLauter (5)

RBI:  Chase DeLauter (12)

Stolen Bases:  José Ramírez (8)

Wins:  Connor Brogdon (2)

Saves:  Cade Smith (3)

ERA:  Tim Herrin (0.00)

Managers:

Baltimore Orioles: Craig Albernaz (1st season)

Cleveland Guardians: Stephen Vogt (3rd season)