Sonny Gray (8-3, 1.60 ERA) starts for the Oakland Athletics (29-40) as they square off against Matt Shoemaker (4-5, 4.85 ERA) and the Los Angeles Angels (34-33) in the first of a three-game series at O.C. Coliseum. Action begins at 9:35 p.m. ET on Friday, Jun. 19 and can be seen on FSN-W and CSN-CA.
Gray is 5-1 with a 2.11 ERA, 0.96 WHIP, and 58 strikeouts against the Angels. Stephen Vogt (.279, 31 Rs, 12 HRs, 47 RBIs) went 1 for 4 yesterday. Shoemaker is 1-2 with a 4.57 ERA against the Athletics in his career. He is up against a good Oakland offense that’s batting .258. Mike Trout (.300, 49 Rs, 18 HRs, 40 RBIs, 8 SBs) has been successful at the plate for the Angels, going 2 for 4 yesterday with one run and one RBI.
Oakland is a -153 favorite against Los Angeles and the Over/Under (O/U) for this game is sitting at seven runs. The Athletics have an overall money line of -1,640 and a record as the favorite of 18-22. Oakland is an impressive 4-1 as the favorite over its last 10 games. The Athletics have seen an uptick in scoring as of late, averaging 6.0 runs during the last 10 games compared to their season average of 4.5 runs per game. The Athletics lead the AL in hits at home with an impressive 9.6 per game. Oakland’s batters do not strike out very often at home, with only 5.9 per game. Turning to the pitchers, opposing offenses have been stifled by the Athletics, who have a team ERA of only 3.53. The Athletics are the fifth-best team in the AL at limiting hits to their opponents, allowing only 8.0 hits per game so far this season.
In games where it is the underdog, Los Angeles has a 12-16 record and an overall money line of -369. They played poorly as the underdog over their last 10 games with a 1-4 record, and a 5-5 record SU. The Angels average 4.0 runs allowed per game, but does better whenever another team from the AL West is on the schedule. They bring that runs allowed average down to 3.5 against division foes.
The Angels lead the season series, 6-4. The Athletics have a 26-26 record against right-handed starting pitchers on the year, which is what they’ll be facing when Shoemaker takes the mound. Gray (RHP) will be on the hill against the Angels, who have a 25-28 record against right-handed starting pitchers.
Predictions: SU Winner – OAK, O/U – Over
Notes
Oakland recorded at least two errors for the 13th time this season.
When the Angels play into extra innings, they have a 1-3 record. The Athletics are 0-6 when their games exceed nine innings.
The Angels are coming into this game after allowing zero walks during their last outing. The Athletics have a 0-2 record when opponents give up that many walks.
When they outhit their opponents, the Athletics are 23-10. The Angels have a 24-9 record when outhitting opponents.
Ranking 21st, Los Angeles sits near the bottom of the league in runs, scoring 264 this season. Oakland ranks in the top five at second with 305.
Ranking 20th, Los Angeles is in the bottom half of the league in walks, notching 178 this season. Oakland ranks in the top five at third with 220.
The Athletics are 20-19 when they hit at least one home run. The Angels perform similarly when they hit one or more homers with a 25-17 record.
