Astros vs. Athletics Prediction
Can the Houston Astros use another strong pitching performance to complete a midweek sweep of the Oakland Athletics when the two meet at 3:35PM ET?
Game Snapshot & Odds
963 Houston Astros at 964 Oakland Athletics
Wednesday, May 9, 2018
3:35PM ET – Oakland Coliseum
TV: ATSW (Hou); NSCA (Oak)
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Public Betting Trends
According to oddsmakers, the Astros are favored on the road, as they are getting odds of -170 to win. Oakland is listed with a money line of +150 to prevail, while the over/under total has been set at 8.5 runs. The public betting currently has 68% going on Oakland at home. This information is subject to change, however, so be sure to check out our MLB Public Betting Page for updated figures on the game.
Astros locked in on the mound
The Astros have won the first two games in this series, getting strong pitching in both cases, as they have allowed a total of 4 runs in the two games. Houston is now 23-15 overall and 13-6 on the road. The Astros are averaging 4.92 runs per game while allowing 2.84 per contest.
Gerrit Cole will take the mound for the Astros this afternoon. He is coming off a complete-game, 1-hitter against the Diamondbacks where he recorded 16 strikeouts. He has double-digit strikeouts in five of his seven starts as he has 77 on the year with just nine walks through 50.2 innings. Cole has a 3-1 record with a 1.42 ERA and a 0.69 WHIP. His worst start actually came against Oakland on April 29 where he gave up a season-high 3 runs over 6.2 innings.
Athletics quiet at the plate
Including the two losses to Houston, the Athletics have been held to two runs in four straight games, despite managing to win two of them. Oakland is now 18-18 overall and 11-8 at home. The Athletics are putting up 4.54 runs per game this season while allowing 4.86 runs per contest.
Daniel Mengden gets the start for Oakland today. He is 2-3 through seven starts with a 4.30 ERA and a 1.19 WHIP. He was rocked by Houston on the road on April 28, allowing 5 runs in 2.1 innings of work. On the year, Mengden has 29 strikeouts with five walks through 37.2 innings.
MLB Betting Trends
Houston
The Astros have won nine of their last 11 road games and they are 6-1 in Cole’s last seven starts overall and 4-1 in his last five divisional starts.
Oakland
Oakland is just 1-6 in its last seven division games and 1-6 in their last seven against a winning team. They have managed to win four of Mengden’s last five starts.
Prediction:
It’s hard to see Cole not continuing his dominant performances. His worst showing was against Oakland, but even that was just three runs allowed with 12 strikeouts. He is getting a lot of swings and misses and very few walks. I don’t see Oakland really finding a way to jump on that. The Astros likely won’t need many runs today, and they should get them against Mengden.
The Pick: Houston Astros -170