Sonny Gray (8-3, 1.95 ERA) starts for the Oakland Athletics (33-41) as they square off against Colby Lewis (7-3, 4.08 ERA) and the Texas Rangers (37-35) in the last of a three-game series at Globe Life Park in Arlington. The Athletics won the last game 8-2 and Oakland leads the series 2-0. Action begins at 2:05 p.m. ET on Thursday, Jun. 25 and can be seen on CSN-CA and FSN-SW.
Lewis is 9-4 with a 3.01 ERA in his appearances against the Athletics, but goes up against a good Oakland offense which is batting .261 this season. Prince Fielder (.342, 35 Rs, 11 HRs, 47 RBIs) continued his strong play yesterday, going 2 for 3. When pitching against the Rangers, Gray is 6-3 with a 1.68 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, and 54 strikeouts. Stephen Vogt (.301, 36 Rs, 13 HRs, 53 RBIs) has been successful at the plate for the Athletics, going 3 for 5 yesterday with two runs and two RBIs.
Oakland takes on Texas as a -138 favorite. The Over/Under (O/U) for the matchup is sitting at eight runs. The Rangers have an overall money line of +1,478 and a record as the underdog of 32-30. Texas has had a discouraging season against division opponents, earning records of 10-16 and 11-19 as the underdog and SU respectively. The Rangers have seen a decline in scoring as of late, averaging 2.9 runs during the last 10 games compared to their season average of 4.4 runs per game. Texas’s pitchers fall apart when division rivals are on the field. Its average runs allowed per game rises to 4.7 against fellow AL West members, compared to its 4.3 season average.
In games where it is the favorite, Oakland has a 21-24 record and an overall money line of -1,512. They played solid baseball as the favorite over their last 10 games with a 5-2 record, and an 8-2 record SU. Offensively, they average four runs per game on the road, which is fifth in the AL. The Athletics are tough outs for opponents, ranking fourth in the AL with 9.0 hits per game. Oakland is excellent at drawing walks with 3.1 per game, ranking fifth in the AL. The Athletics have established a reputation of overwhelming hitters with an AL-best 7.7 strikeouts per road game, making them one of the top five teams in the league.
The Athletics lead the season series, 8-4. The Rangers have a 24-21 record against right-handed starting pitchers on the year, which is what they’ll be facing when Gray takes the mound. Lewis (RHP) will be on the hill against the Athletics, who have a 29-28 record against right-handed starting pitchers.
Predictions: SU Winner – OAK, O/U – Over
Notes
For the 15th time this season, the Rangers registered at least two errors in a game.
The Rangers are 3-3 in games that go into extra innings. Meanwhile, the Athletics are 0-6 in such matchups.
The Athletics are coming into this game after allowing two walks during their last outing. The Rangers have a 13-18 record when opponents give up that many walks or fewer.
When they are outhit, the Athletics are 5-27. The Rangers have an 8-29 record when opponents outhit them.
Texas and Oakland both rank in the top half of the league in home runs. Texas sits at 11th with 72 home runs this season and Oakland ranks 15th with 65.
Ranking ninth, Texas is in the top 10 of the league in hits, notching 8.41 per game. Oakland ranks in the top five at fourth with 9.03.
Ranking 17th, Texas is in the bottom half of the league for its on-base plus slugging percentage (.711). Oakland ranks in the top half at 11th with an OPS of .726.
The Athletics are 9-28 in games where they allow one or more home runs. The Rangers are 19-28 when they allow at least one homer.
