In the first of a three-game series between the Oakland Athletics (64-89) and the San Francisco Giants (79-73) at O.co Coliseum, Sonny Gray (13-7, 2.72 ERA) and Mike Leake (10-9, 3.81 ERA) get the start. The Athletics enter this series looking to snap a five-game losing streak. The game starts at 10:05 p.m. ET on Friday, Sep. 25 and will air on CSCA, CSBy and MLBN.
In his last start, Gray pitched 5.1 innings, giving up five runs, striking out two and walking four in a 10-6 loss to the Astros. Danny Valencia (.291, 51 Rs, 16 HRs, 61 RBIs, 2 SBs) went 1 for 4 yesterday. The Giants were unsuccessful the last time Leake pitched. He tossed 3.0 innings, allowing three runs and walking one in a 6-0 loss to the Diamondbacks.
Oakland, a -131 favorite, will look to capitalize at home against San Francisco. The Over/Under (O/U) for the matchup is seven runs. When playing as the favorite, the Athletics have a 33-37 record and overall money line at -3,041. They have struggled as the favorite over their last 10 games, going 0-1. Oakland has averaged 4.9 runs per game during interleague play, higher than its season average of 4.2. Don’t expect the Oakland hitters to swing wildly. They average only 6.8 strikeouts per game. Below average play has been the norm lately for the Oakland pitchers. The Athletics have given up an average of 6.9 runs to opponents in their last 10 games, above their season average of 4.4 runs per game.
On the other side, the Giants have a record of 33-40 when they are the underdog and are +53 overall with the money line. Interleague competitors haven’t been able to get the upper hand on fiery San Francisco. The Giants hold a record of 4-3 in games where they were ranked as the underdog and an 11-6 SU. They sport the fifth-ranked offense in the NL, averaging 4.3 runs per game. Playing AL opponents really brings the best out of the San Francisco pitchers. They allow 2.6 runs per game against teams in the AL, which is lower than their season average of 3.8.
So far this season, the Giants are 3-0 against the Athletics. The Athletics will take on a right-hander (Leake) in this game and have a 50-57 record against right-handed starting pitchers this season. The right-handed Gray will take the mound against the Giants, who have a 61-52 record against righty starters this season.
Predictions: SU Winner – SF, O/U – Over
Notes
Oakland recorded at least two errors for the 26th time this season.
Having scored one run in their last game, the Athletics are going to have to up their game if they want to win this matchup. The Giants have a 30-2 record in games where opponents scored that many runs or fewer.
When they are outhit, the Giants are 5-48. The Athletics have a 10-59 record when opponents outhit them.
Oakland and San Francisco both rank near the bottom of the league in home runs. Oakland sits at 21st with 137 home runs this season and San Francisco ranks 27th with 126.
Ranking sixth, Oakland is in the top 10 of the league in hits, notching 8.70 per game. San Francisco ranks in the top five at second with 9.16.
Ranking 24th, Oakland is near the bottom of the league for its on-base plus slugging percentage (.708). San Francisco ranks in the top half at 11th with an OPS of .735.
When the Giants allow at least one home run, they are 37-53. When the Athletics allow one or more homers, they have a 26-68 record.
