The Los Angeles Angels travel up the coast to take on the Oakland Athletics on the Fourth of July! Below we will continue our MLB odds series with an Angels-Athletics prediction and pick. We will also let you know how to watch the game.
Angels-Athletics Projected Starters
Roansy Contreras vs. JP Sears
Roansy Contreras (1-0) with a 3.82 ERA, 1.39 WHIP, 33.0 innings pitched, 31K/15BB, .250 oBA
Last Start: against Oakland Athletics: No Decision, 3 innings, 4 hits, 1 run, 2 walks, 2 strikeouts
2024 Road Splits: 8 games, 0 starts, 5.79 ERA, 1.71 ERA, 9.1 innings pitched, 10K/5BB, .282 oBA
JP Sears (4-7) with a 5.00 ERA, 1.31 WHIP, 90 innings pitched, 62K/29BB, .260 oBA
Last Start: at Arizona Diamondbacks: No Decision, 6 innings, 5 hits, 3 runs, 1 walk, 6 strikeouts
2024 Home Splits: 7 starts, 5.29 ERA, 1.29 WHIP, 34 innings pitched, 22K/10BB, .264 oBA
Here are the MLB Odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
MLB Odds: Angels-Athletics Odds
Los Angeles Angels: -1.5 (+150)
Moneyline: -102
Oakland Athletics: +1.5 (-182)
Moneyline: -116
Over: 9 (-104)
Under: 9 (-118)
How to Watch Angels vs. Athletics
Time: 4:07 PM ET/1:07 PM PT
TV: Fox Sports West, NBC Sports California
Stream: fuboTV (Click for free trial)
Why The Angels Will Cover The Spread/Win
The Angels are facing a very hittable pitcher. Sears has an ERA over 5.00, and he finished June with a 7.94 ERA. Sears allowed 33 hits in 22.2 innings in his five starts in June. The Angels have a great chance to make some hard contact, and put some runs up in this game. The Angels actually played good baseball in June as they went 15-11. They also had an OPS of .691 in the month. If the Angels can get some good wood on the ball, they will win this game.
Roansy Contreras is an opener, but his last start was against the Athletics. He was able to shut them down for three innings, and I would not be surprised to see him go another three or four innings. The Athletics have the third-worst batting average, ninth-worst slugging percentage, and the highest whiff percentage. Los Angeles should be able to shut down the Athletics in this game once again.
Why The Athletics Will Cover The Spread/Win
Oakland needs Sears to have a good start in this one. Before June, Sears was pitching very well. He had a sub-4.00 ERA in the months of April and May combined. Sears has to get back to pitching like that. He did have one bad start in June that really set him back, so that is something to keep in mind, as well. If Sears can get back to pitching like that, the Athletics will win this game.
The Angels are batting under .240 this season, and their on-base percentage is in the bottom-10 in the MLB. Los Angeles has also scored the 11th-fewest runs in the MLB. The Angels struggle to score, and the Athletics need to take advantage of that. If the Athletics can get the ball to Mason Miller and Lucas Erceg with the lead, the Athletics will win this game.
Final Angels-Athletics Prediction & Pick
The Angels have already beaten the Athletics multiple times this season. This game should be no different. Sears is not throwing the ball too well right now, and Contreras has already pitched well against the Athletics once this season. Because of that, I think the Angels will win this game pretty easily. I will take the Angels to win this game straight up Thursday night.
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Final Angels-Athletics Prediction & Pick: Angels ML (-102)