Rich Hill (3-2, 2.42 ERA) takes the hill for the Oakland Athletics (13-12) as they square off against Doug Fister (1-3, 5.56 ERA) and the Houston Astros (7-17) in the last of a three-game series at O.C. Coliseum. The Athletics won the last game 2-0, and Oakland leads the series 2-0. Action begins at 4:05 p.m. ET on Sunday, May. 1 and can be seen on RTSW and CSCA.
Hill pitched 7.0 innings in his most recent start, surrendering zero runs and striking out eight in a 5-1 win over the Tigers. Marcus Semien (.205, 9 Rs, 6 HRs, 10 RBIs, 1 SB) went 1 for 2 yesterday. Fister went 6.0 innings, surrendering three runs, striking out two and walking seven in a 3-2 defeat to the Mariners in his last outing. Colby Rasmus (.263, 11 Rs, 7 HRs, 19 RBIs, 1 SB) went 1 for 4 yesterday.
The odds for Oakland and Houston are even, while the Over/Under (O/U) is unavailable as of now. Within its division, Oakland has a record of 1-7 SU. The Athletics have seen an uptick in scoring as of late, averaging 0.0 runs during the last 10 games compared to their season average of 0.0 runs per game. Oakland’s pitching staff has been doing better against opposing offenses during the last 10 games, only allowing an average of 0.0 runs per game, well under their season average of 0.0.
The Astros are 5-3 against teams in their division. Offensively, the Astros have really picked up the pace in the last 10 games. They have exceeded their season average of 0.0 runs per game by averaging 0.0 during that stretch. The Astros are an excellent base stealing team with 18 stolen bases, ranking third in the MLB. The Astros allow 0.0 runs per game, but have improved upon those numbers in the past 10 games, allowing 0.0 runs per game during that span.
The Athletics have the edge in the season series, 2-0.
Predictions: SU Winner – HOU
Notes
After last game’s shutout win against Houston, the Athletics now have one shutout this season. The Astros have been shut out in one game this season.
The Athletics managed to give up four walks in their last game. They’ll have to pick it up against the Astros who are coming in with a 3-8 record against opponents who give up that many walks or more.
It looks like the Athletics have a slight leg up on the Astros, as the Athletics have won their last two games while the Astros have lost their last two.
When they outhit their opponents, the Astros are 5-3. The Athletics have an 11-1 record when outhitting opponents.
Tied at 20th for total runs, Oakland and Houston have each notched 90 runs this season.
Ranking 26th, Oakland is near the bottom of the league in walks, notching 62 this season. Houston ranks in the top 10 at eighth with 85.
The Athletics are 9-7 in games where they hit one or more home runs. The Astros are 6-12 when they hit at least one homer.
