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Cleveland Guardians 2024 season preview: Projected lineup and pitchers, betting odds and 3 things to watch for

The Cleveland Guardians will open the season on Thursday night against the Oakland Athletics.

CLEVELAND — The Cleveland Guardians' 2024 season is set to get underway on Thursday night. 

The Guards will open on the road, taking on the Oakland Athletics in a four-game series. Thursday night's season opener has a start time of 10:07 p.m. ET.

On April 8, the same day as the solar eclipse, the Guardians will be at Progressive Field for their home opener against the Chicago White Sox. First pitch is scheduled for 5:10 p.m. 

Here's everything you need to know about the 2024 Guardians season ahead of Opening Day: 

Projected 2024 lineup

  • Steven Kwan, LF
  • Andrés Giménez, 2B
  • José Ramírez, 3B
  • Josh Naylor, 1B
  • Bo Naylor, C
  • Ramón Laureano, RF
  • Will Brennan, DH
  • Brayan Rocchio, SS
  • Tyler Freeman, CF

Projected 2024 starters 

  • Shane Bieber 
  • Triston McKenzie 
  • Tanner Bibee 
  • Logan Allen 
  • Carlos Carrasco 

Projected 2024 bullpen

  • Emmanuel Clase
  • Tyler Beede
  • Scott Barlow
  • Nick Sandlin
  • Hunter Gaddis
  • Eli Morgan
  • Tim Herrin
  • Cade Smith

Cleveland Guardians betting odds

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook 

  • Odds of winning the 2024 World Series: +6,000
  • Odds to win the 2024 American League Pennant: +2,500
  • Odds to win the 2024 American League Central: +350
  • Odds of winning over 79.5 regular season games: -120 
  • Odds of winning under 79.5 regular season games: +100
  • Odds of making the playoffs: +185

3 things to watch for

A new era of Cleveland Guardians baseball

Following the retirement of future Baseball Hall of Famer Terry "Tito" Francona, the Guardians named Stephen Vogt as manager. This year marks the club's first season under a new manager since 2013. Vogt has big shoes to fill after Tito led Cleveland to six playoff appearances, including a berth in the 2016 World Series, in his 11-year tenure.

The 39-year-old Vogt has never managed at any level, but he brings a wealth of experience in baseball. He is tasked with the difficult job of turning around a Guardians team following a disappointing season in which they posted a 76-86 record. Vogt could be a hero if Cleveland returns to its winning ways. 

Will offensive concerns continue? 

As the Cleveland Guardians head into the 2024 season, the offense remains one of the biggest concerns. Last year, the Guardians ranked 27th in the MLB in runs scored with 662. To add to the offensive troubles, the team also finished last in the MLB in home runs with a mere 124.

In order to see success this season, the Guardians will need to find some life in their offense. Five-time All-Star José Ramírez will be one of the key components of Cleveland's attack after posting a .282 batting average with 24 homers and 80 runs batted in last season. In addition to Ramírez, the Guardians hope to see powerful hitting from the Naylor brothers, with Josh coming off of his finest season at the plate and Bo ready for his first full MLB campaign. 

Following Vogt's hire, he told 3News' Dave Chudowsky that he sees potential with this team and the offensive corrections that they can make.

"If we can hit the baseball a little bit harder, we're going to see some more doubles, we're going to see, hopefully, a few more home runs," Vogt said. "We have that potential, and it's just teaching guys and helping them learn quickly when to take those chances."

Shane Bieber's future

For the fifth consecutive year, Shane Bieber will be Cleveland's starting pitcher on Opening Day. Whether he will be on the roster at the end of the season is another matter. The 28-year-old right-hander is in the final year of his contract and could be dealt between now and the MLB Trade Deadline on July 30. Or the Guardians could elect to play out the string with Bieber and see what happens in the offseason. 

As long as he is still in Cleveland, the Guardians are hoping to have Bieber back at top form after two injury-plagued seasons. Last year, Bieber experienced a dip in velocity following a forearm injury and also posted a career-low strikeout-to-walk rate of 3.1. 

If Bieber can return to his peak performance levels that we saw between 2019-2021, which included a Cy Young Award in 2020, the Guardians may very well have one of the top starting rotations in baseball. 

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