The Oakland Athletics will play host to the Tampa Bay Rays at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. NBC Sports – California will broadcast this AL showdown and the action gets going at 10:05 p.m. ET.
Tampa Bay Rays vs. Oakland Athletics Odds
Tampa Bay (+100) is the underdog to Oakland (-110) and Vegas has set the Over/Under for this one at 8.5 runs (-125 for the under and +105 for the over). Gamblers can also bet on the game’s spread with the most recent runline odds sitting at Rays +1.5 runs (-210) and Athletics -1.5 runs (+175).
The Athletics are 28-26 SU and 25-28 ATS. The team has gained 5.3 units for moneyline bettors while gaining 5.3 units against the spread (ATS). Oakland has a 3-4 ATS mark over its last seven games and the under has cashed in five of those seven. The Rays are 26-26 SU and have gone 26-25 ATS. Overall, the team’s lost 0.8 units for bettors taking the moneyline, but have gained 0.7 units ATS. Tampa Bay is 3-4 ATS over its last seven games and the total has gone under in five of those seven.
Neither side has been an obvious over/under play this season. Athletics games have had an over/under record of 25-25-3 so far in 2018. The Rays have an over/under record of 25-24-2.
Left-hander Blake Snell will get the nod for Tampa Bay. Snell is 6-3 with a 2.78 ERA and 69 strikeouts. He has yet to face the Athletics this year and only made one start against them in 2017 (0-0, 6.75 ERA and six strikeouts across four innings).
The Athletics are preparing to start righty Daniel Gossett (0-2, 6.28 ERA), who has eight strikeouts and four walks to his credit, as well as a 1.33 WHIP. Gossett only made one start against the Rays in 2017 (0-1, 3.86 ERA and three strikeouts across seven innings).
As a unit, Oakland’s pitchers have allowed 4.4 runs per game overall this year. Its starters have a 4.20 ERA, 1.17 WHIP and 7.1 strikeouts per nine innings. The bullpen has a 3.56 ERA, 1.38 WHIP and 8.1 K/9.
Oakland’s hitters are putting up 4.3 runs per outing, including 2.9 per game over its last 10 games and 2.0 per game over their last five. The team has hit .179/.240/.315 over its last five games and is 3-2 SU during that span.
Second baseman Jed Lowrie and shortstop Marcus Semien have led the Athletics’ batters this year. Lowrie is slashing .303/.369/.505 with nine home runs, 38 RBIs and 20 runs scored, and Semien is hitting .273 with five homers, 24 RBIs and 35 runs scored.
Semien appeared to enjoy facing lefty pitching at home last year. Across 48 such plate appearances, he slashed .256/.396/.487 (his total season line was .249/.325/.398).
For the visiting squad, Tampa Bay’s pitchers have allowed 4.3 runs per game and its starting pitchers own a 4.16 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and 8.42 K/9. The bullpen has managed an ERA of 3.90, along with a K/9 of 8.28.
The Rays offense has slashed .261/.336/.398 on its way to 4.2 runs scored per game in 2018, including 3.8 runs per game over the team’s last 10 games and 4.0 per game over the team’s last five outings (4-1 SU).
Tampa Bay’s offense has been powered by first baseman C.J. Cron and catcher Wilson Ramos, who’ve collectively blasted 17 home runs. Cron is slashing .263/.323/.468 with 11 home runs, 30 RBIs and 29 runs scored, while Ramos is hitting .310/.352/.465 with six homers, 25 RBIs and 15 runs scored.
Cron didn’t do as well hitting against right-handed pitching on the road last season. Over 135 such plate appearances, he put up a slash line of .213/.244/.339 (his overall season line was .248/.305/.437).
The Rays have lost 3.0 units and are 15-18 ATS when facing a right-handed starting pitcher this year. The over has hit in 18 of those games, compared to 14 that’ve gone under in such games. On the other hand, the Athletics have lost 1.5 units and are 9-10 ATS when facing a lefty starter. The over has cashed in seven of those games, compared to 10 that went under the total.
Tampa Bay Rays at Oakland Athletics Prediction
Predictions: SU Winner – Athletics, ATS Winner – Rays, O/U – OVER
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Notes
Betting Trends
Both teams have hit eight home runs over their last 10 games.
Tampa Bay has averaged 20.4 runs + hits + errors over its last 10 outings and 22.8 over its last five.
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