The Oakland Athletics will be taking on their divisional rival Texas Rangers at Globe Life Park. The first pitch is scheduled for 8:05 p.m. ET and NBC Sports – California is in line to televise the action.
Oakland Athletics at Texas Rangers Odds
Oddsmakers have placed equal -105 moneyline odds on each team. The total sits at 10.5 runs and bettors can wager on the over for even money (+100) and the under for -120. Gamblers can also wager on the game’s runline with the current odds standing at +140 for the Athletics -1.5 runs and -160 for the Rangers +1.5.
The Athletics have gone 13-11 SU this year and are 11-12 against the spread (ATS). They’ve accumulated 1.1 units for moneyline gamblers in the season’s early going, despite having lost 2.9 units ATS. Oakland’s covered the spread five times in its last seven games and the over has hit in five of those seven. The Rangers, on the other hand, are 8-17 SU and 9-15 ATS. The team’s lost 3.5 units for moneyline bettors and 9.8 units ATS. Texas has covered the spread only twice over its last seven games and the over has cashed in five of those seven.
Texas games have an over/under record of 12-11-1 so far in 2018. Athletics games have gone over 13 times, gone under nine times and pushed on one occasion.
Kendall Graveman will get the nod for the visiting Athletics. The right-handed Graveman is 0-4 with a 10.07 ERA and 16 strikeouts. He’s 0-1 with a 7.20 ERA against Texas this year (four starts).
The Rangers are handing the ball to righty Doug Fister (1-2, 3.95 ERA), who’s got 13 punchouts and five walks, as well as a WHIP of 1.61. Fister is 0-1 with five strikeouts and a 4.91 ERA in one start against Oakland this year.
Oakland’s pitching staff allowed 4.7 runs per game and its starting pitchers own a 4.58 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and 7.45 K/9. The bullpen has an ERA of 3.75, along with a WHIP of 1.18 and a K-per-9 of 7.30.
Athletics hitters have slashed .272/.356/.452 on their way to 5.3 runs scored per game this season, including 4.4 runs per game against divisional foes and 4.4 per game over the team’s last five contests (4-1 SU).
Second baseman Jed Lowrie and third baseman Matt Chapman have led Oakland’s offense. Lowrie is slashing .363/.420/.618 with six home runs, 24 RBIs and 13 runs scored, while Chapman (.281/.385/.539) has produced five homers, 14 RBIs and 19 runs scored.
Chapman appeared to have a little trouble hitting righty pitching on the road last year. Over 115 such plate appearances, he maintained a slash line of .149/.243/.347 (compared to his overall season line of .234/.313/.472).
In the home-team dugout, Texas’ pitching staff has given up 5.2 runs per game overall this year. The team’s starters have an ERA of 5.00, a WHIP of 1.49 and a strikeouts-per-nine of 7.7. The bullpen has a 4.47 ERA, 1.48 WHIP and 8.4 K/9. In 19 divisional games, Rangers starters have an ERA of 4.62 and the bullpen’s ERA is 5.35.
Texas’ hitters are putting up 3.6 runs per outing, including 3.3 per game against divisional foes and 4.4 per game over their last five. The team’s hit .235/.330/.377 over its last five contests and is 1-4 SU during that stretch.
Elvis Andrus and Shin-soo Choo have led the charge for the Rangers’ offense so far. Andrus is slashing .327/.426/.500 with 17 hits, five RBIs and seven runs scored, and Choo’s line sits at .250/.324/.469 with five homers, 11 RBIs and 15 runs.
The Athletics have gained 2.9 units and are 6-7 ATS when facing a right-handed starting pitcher this season. The over has cashed in nine of those games, as opposed to four that’ve hit the under in such games. On the other hand, the Rangers have lost 0.1 units and are 8-10 ATS when facing a righty starter. The over’s hit in eight of those games, compared to nine that’ve gone under.
Oakland Athletics at Texas Rangers MLB Prediction
Predictions: SU Winner – Rangers, ATS Winner – Rangers, O/U – OVER
Notes
Betting Trends
The Athletics have won eight of their last nine games SU while the Rangers have lost five of their last six SU.
Texas has recorded 20.4 Runs + Hits + Errors per game over its last 10 contests and 19.6 over its last five.
Each team has hit 12 home runs over its last 10 games.
+++++
