The Oakland Athletics (8-11) travel to face off against the Cleveland Guardians (13-6) on Friday, April 19th. This game will be played at Progressive Field in Cleveland and televised on BSGL. Both team’s come into this one having won their previous games. First pitch is set for 7:10 ET.

Athletics vs Guardians

The Athletics wrapped up their series vs. the Cardinals with a 6-3 win. Oakland was the slight favorite at +107 on the money line going into the game. It was a three-run 3rd inning that really turned things in their favor, and the Cardinals could only score three runs, all of which came in the 4th.

Paul Blackburn put together a good start for the Athletics, going 5 2/3 innings and giving up just three earned runs, and picking up the win. Oakland’s offense was carried by Esteury Ruiz, who went 1/5 with a homer and two RBIs.

The Athletics are on the road today, as they are set to take on the Guardians in the series opener. Oakland comes into this one with a record of 8-11, which puts them 4th in the AL West. Right now, they are 2.5 games behind the Rangers for the division lead. This season, the Athletics have a series record of 3-3.

So far, Oakland has been good on the road, putting together a record of 4-2. At home, they have gone just 4-9. Oakland picked up a win in their most recent game, closing out their series with the Cardinals with a win. This came after dropping four straight games.

The A’s have been a solid bet against the run line this season, going 10-9 overall. They have been especially good on the road, where they are 5-1 vs. the run line. Their average run differential is -1.2 runs per game, but they have been able to cover the run line in 10 of their 17 games as the underdog.

The Oakland Athletics have played 18 games with an over/under line this season. The average line in those games has been 8 runs. The over/under record for the Athletics is 8-10, and the combined run average in their games is 7.1 runs. In the two games where the over/under line was set at 8.5 runs, the over has hit in two of them.

Joe Boyle Gets The Start For The Athletics

Joe Boyle will be making his 4th start of the season for the Athletics, and he’s looking to bounce back after taking the loss in his last outing. Boyle has a win and 2 losses on the year, and his last start was on the road vs. the Nationals. In that outing, he went 5 innings, giving up 5 hits and 1 earned run.

Athletics Offense Breakdown

For the Athletics, we have Zack Gelof as our top projected hitter in terms of total hits. His home run projection is 2nd on the team and 10th in today’s slate of games. Shea Langeliers is our top projected home run hitter for the Athletics, and his home run projection is 8th in today’s games. Abraham Toro is 2nd on the team in terms of total hits, and his home run projection is 16th in today’s games.

Cleveland closed out their series vs. the Red Sox with a 5-4 win on the road. The Guardians were the slight favorite at -112 on the money line. It was a big 3rd inning for the Guardians, as they scored three runs in the inning. Cleveland’s offense was carried by Andrés Giménez, who went 2/5 with two RBIs.

Carlos Carrasco got the start for the Guardians, going 5 2/3 innings, and giving up just two runs on four hits. He only had five strikeouts in the outing and got the win.

Cleveland heads into today’s game vs. the Athletics with an overall record of 13-6, good or 1st place in the AL Central. The Guardians hold a one-game lead over the Royals heading into today’s game. So far, they have been good on the road, going 10-3, and just above .500 at home at 3-3.

The Guardians are coming off a series win over the Red Sox and, before that, took a series from the Yankees. This season, they are 5-1 in series matchups. Cleveland is also riding a four-game winning streak in series on the road. When playing during the day, they are 7-3 this season.

When the Cleveland Guardians win, they tend to win big, with an average run margin of 3.8 runs per victory. That’s helped them to a run line record of 12-7 overall, including an impressive 9-4 mark on the road. They’ve been particularly good against the run line as the underdog, going 8-1 in those games. However, they’ve been less reliable as the favorite, going just 4-6 against the run line in those contests.

So far this season, the Cleveland Guardians have played 18 games, and their over/under record is 11-7. Their games have averaged 8.8 runs per game, and the average over/under line has been set at 8 runs. When the line has been set at 8.5 runs, their over/under record is 4-3. Only 5.3% of their games have had an over/under line set at 8.5 runs, and 57.9% of their games have had an over/under line set below 8.5 runs. In their last 10 games, the over has hit 6 times.

Triston McKenzie Gets The Start For The Guardians

Triston McKenzie is getting the start at home for the Cleveland Guardians against the Oakland Athletics. So far this season, McKenzie has a win and a loss in his two starts. He went 5 2/3 innings in his first start, not allowing a run, but then took the loss in his last outing, giving up 5 runs in 4 innings.

Guardians Offense Breakdown

When looking at the Cleveland Guardians’ top hitting projections for today’s game, we see that Steven Kwan is our top projected hitter in terms of total hits. His total hits projection is 11th best in the league today. José Ramírez has the 3rd best total hits projection on the team and Andrés Giménez is 2nd. Bo Naylor has the best home run projection on the team and it is 9th best in the league today.

Athletics vs Guardians Prediction

Our prediction for today’s Athletics vs. Guardians matchup is to take the Guardians to pick up the win at home. However, with a money line payout of -177, we actually recommend taking the over at 8.5 runs, which is currently paying out at -110.

If you’re looking for a starting pitcher prediction, we have Triston McKenzie finishing with seven strikeouts, which is the fourth-best among today’s starters. As for Joe Boyle, we have him ending the game with five K’s, which is towards the bottom of today’s starters.

All odds are courtesy of Action247 Sportsbook. Good luck!!

* All odds are provided by Action247 Sportsbook and all odds subject to change.**All views expressed are my own. My picks are my own and are not a guarantee, bet at your own risk.Action247 does not warrant the accuracy of completeness of the information, text, graphics, links or other items contained within these post.