The Los Angeles Angels take on the Oakland Athletics. Check out our MLB odds series for our Angels Athletics prediction and pick.
Jose Suarez gets the ball for the Angels, while Cole Irvin goes to the rubber for the Athletics.
Jose Suarez has a 4.55 ERA, which makes him a relatively mediocre pitcher. Yet, in comparison with a lot of other pitchers with similar ERAs, one thing about Suarez stands out. He doesn't go deep into games when the Angels entrust a start to him. Get this: Suarez has pitched more than five innings in only two of his starts this season. He has pitched six full innings only once. He began the year with a noticeable inability to get past 13 outs (4 1/3 innings). That tendency has largely remained in place this season. So, even if he gives up just one run in a start, if it's based on 4 1/3 innings of work, the ERA and the overall value to the team are minimized. If Suarez goes 4 1/3 innings and allows two runs, that's a mediocre outing. If he allows three or more runs in under five innings, that's below average. The lack of innings makes the 4.55 ERA worse than it might seem.
Cole Irvin has a 3.04 ERA. He has been a very quiet, very good pitcher in 2022. Oakland lost nine straight games in which Irvin started, even though Irvin's ERA in those nine games was in the neighborhood of 3.70. He had a few bad outings in that nine-game stretch, but most of his starts were very good. He simply could not get any run support. In July, Irvin delivered a 1.85 ERA. He was superb, and he delivered his best performances of the season. Last week against the Angels in Anaheim on Aug. 2, he pitched six innings and allowed two earned runs. One should not expect Los Angeles to feast on Irvin for the rematch in Oakland.
Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the Angels-Athletics MLB odds.
MLB Odds: Angels-Athletics Odds
Los Angeles Angels: +1.5 (-210)
Oakland Athletics: -1.5 (+172)
Over: 7.5 (-112)
Under: 7.5 (-108)
Why The Angels Could Cover the Spread
The Angels put up a good fight over the weekend in Seattle, splitting four games against the Mariners even though Shohei Ohtani did not pitch in that series. It would have been easy for this team to fold the tent and basically play out the string, but the Halos showed that they still have some fighting spirit. That's important. The A's, meanwhile, remain a team which struggles to score. Oakland is still worse than the Angels are. There are plenty of valid reasons to go with the Angels here.
Why The Athletics Could Cover the Spread
Cole Irvin versus Jose Suarez is a pitching matchup which heavily favors the A's. Irvin doesn't get a lot of national publicity, but he has been really good for Oakland and would be a valuable back-end rotation starter for a good team which can score runs. Put Irvin on the Toronto Blue Jays, and see where Toronto would be in the playoff picture. The Jays would probably be several games better if you substitute Irvin for Yusei Kikuchi.
Meanwhile, Jose Suarez's inability to eat lots of innings is a significant limitation for the Angels. Given that the L.A. bullpen is also weak, Oakland's hitters — who had some success last week in Anaheim — should feel they can do damage here.
Final Angels-Athletics Prediction & Pick
Cole Irvin versus Jose Suarez is a lopsided matchup. Take the A's.
Final Angels-Athletics Prediction & Pick: Athletics -1.5
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