I was searching odds today and noticed the Seattle Mariners, a road team, are favored by 1 1/2 runs against the Cleveland Indians today in Bovada’s Mariners vs. Indians Betting Lines. That, after the Mariners have dropped 10 of their last 11 away games. I took a second to think how could a team so bad on the road could actually be favored against the AL Central leaders. Then it struck me, Felix Hernandez. He has a way of making losing streaks irrelevant.
Hernandez, 3-2 with a 2.29 ERA, takes the mound against Cleveland, and will face off against Ubaldo Jimenez, who hasn’t exactly been a bargain since joining the Indians.
King Felix is a career 5-3 with a 2.49 ERA in 11 starts against the Indians. He was brilliant in his first start against them on April 19, striking out 12 in eight innings but a lack of run support gave him a 2-1 loss.
In his first full season with the club, Jimenez is 3-3 with a 5.17 ERA. He won his first two starts this year, but has lost three of his last four, giviing up seven runs in two of those three losses. He leads the majors with 30 walks, compared to just 24 strikeouts this year.
“We’re just working on his mechanics so he can repeat his delivery and be more consistent in the strike zone,” manager Manny Acta told the Associated Press. “He still has pretty good stuff and he can get people out.”
The good news is, he pitched a complete-game gem against the Mariners in his only start against them, but he’s never faced Hernandez.
Cleveland swept a two-game series against the lowly Minnesota Twins on Tuesday. Shin Soo Choo, Carlos Santana and Asdrubal Cabrera homered in the 5-0 win to maintain their lead in the division. After returning to the lineup, and being placed in the leadoff spot, Choo drove home the game-winner on Monday and went 2 for 4 last night. He’s hitting .303 in his last 13 games.
“He’s one of our key guys in our lineup,” Acta told the Indians’ website. “In 
order for us to go anywhere, he needs to produce. That’s how important he is to our lineup.”
Seattle has scored two runs or fewer in five of its last six games, and sports a .233 team average that’s among the league’s worst. Its lone bright spot has been second baseman Dustin Ackley, currently riding an 11-game hitting streak. He has good odds to keep it going in Mariners vs. Indians Player Props.