Oakland Athletics at Boston Red Sox Betting Preview
On Saturday, a pair of American League teams will get together for the middle game of their three-game series. The Oakland Athletics will play at the Boston Red Sox. The Red Sox won the first game of the series and moved their overall record to 46-43 on the season.
The Red Sox still remain ten games out of first place in the American League East but have won three straight games. For Oakland, they lost their MLB leading 65th game of the season. The Athletics are way back in the American League West.
The Boston Red Sox are big favorites in this game. You can grab the Red Sox at -210 over Oakland in this one. The total for the game is nine runs.
Oakland Not Doing Much Well
There really is no way to sugarcoat it. Oakland is not doing well. The positive sign is the Athletics won back-to-back games this week at Detroit. Oakland is the worst offensive team in the league and the worst pitching team in baseball.
Oakland is allowing six runs per game, and opponents are hitting .272 against them. On the offensive side, Esteury Ruiz leads the team with a .257 batting average, while Brent Rooker has 14 home runs and has drove in 42 runs. Oakland is on pace to lose well over 100 games.
Paul Blackburn will get the start for the Oakland Athletics in this one. The 29-year-old is 1-1 on the season, with a 4.50 earned run average. Blackburn has made seven starts this season and thrown 36 innings. In those 36 innings, he’s allowed 41 hits while striking out 40 batters. He is coming off a five-inning outing against the White Sox on July 2nd in a loss.
Boston goes with Veteran Lefty
For Boston, James Paxton gets the ball. The 34-year-old will return from the paternity list to make the start. He is 4-1 on the season and holds a 2.70 earned run average. Paxton is coming off a strong start against the Blue Jays, where Boston won the game 5-0. He threw 7.2 innings, allowing just three hits in the game.
Boston would love to get hot and be a player in the divisional race or even the wildcard race. To do that, though, the Red Sox will need improved pitching. Boston is in the bottom half of team ERA at 4.41, and teams are hitting .253 against them. The Red Sox, in their last six wins, are just allowing 3.5 runs per game. In their most recent six losses, they are allowing over five runs per game.
Offensively, the Red Sox are anchored by Masataka Yoshida. The left fielder is hitting .312 on the season. Rafael Devers is the top power man for the Red Sox, with 20 bombs and a team-leading 68 runs batted in.
Red Sox Win Easily
Do not overthink this. Boston wins this game and wins it easily. Take the Red Sox. If you do not like Boston at -210, take the Red Sox -1.5 and get them at -110. Boston wins over Oakland on Saturday.
