The Oakland Athletics (19-26) travel to face off against the Houston Astros (18-25) on Thursday, May 16th. This game will be played at Minute Maid Park in Houston and televised on None. The Astros are coming off a win in their previous game, while the Athletics are looking to get back on track from a loss to the Astros. First pitch is set for 8:10 ET.
Athletics vs Astros
Houston cruised to a 3-0 win over the Athletics in the most recent game of this series. The Astros had a two-run 1st inning and added their final run in the 4th. As for the Athletics, they only had two hits and didn’t score a run in the game until the 9th inning.
Framber Valdez pitched well for the Astros in this one, going seven innings and striking out eight without giving up a run. He picked up a win in the game, while Seth Martinez got the save. Aaron Brooks had a rough outing for the Athletics, taking the loss.
Jeremy Pena was the only player in the game to have more than one hit. He scored one of the Astros’ three runs and drove in a run as well. Yordan Alvarez and Carlos Correa each had an RBI for Houston’s offense.
The Athletics are on the road today, and they are looking to snap a four-game losing streak, as they are 19-26 overall this season. Oakland is 5.5 games behind the Mariners for the AL West lead, and they are 4th in the division with a 4-9 record against other AL West teams. So far, they have gone 10-13 at home and 9-13 on the road.
As the underdog, the Athletics are 15-25 this season and 4-1 when favored. Oakland’s overall series record is 6-6-1, and they have dropped two straight series. Looking at their overall play, the Athletics have gone just 2-8 over their last ten games.
When the Oakland Athletics are on the road, they have a run line record of 12-10, with an average run margin of -1.3. As the underdog, they have a run line record of 22-18. In their losses, their average run margin is -4.2.
When the Oakland Athletics and Houston Astros meet, the over/under line is typically set at 8.5 runs. So far this season, the combined run average in their games is also 8.5. The over/under record for the Athletics is 22-22, and their games have gone over 8.5 runs in 6.7% of their games. Their last two games have gone under the total, and their overall over/under record is 5-6 when the line is set at 8.5 runs.
Joey Estes Gets The Start For The Athletics
Joey Estes will be making his second start of the season, and he is coming off a win in his first outing. He went 5 innings and struck out 5 batters while giving up 2 hits and 1 earned run. He also gave up 1 home run in the win over the Mariners.
Athletics Offense Breakdown
As a team, the Athletics are batting just .220 this season, which is 22nd in the league. However, they do have the 3rd most home runs in the league and have the 6th best isolated power mark in the league. As a team, they are averaging 3.8 runs per game, and they have been even worse on the road, averaging just 3 runs per contest.
Abraham Toro and Brent Rooker have been the team’s top two hitters so far this season, and both have been swinging the bat well of late. Toro has gone 15/45 in his last 10 games, while Rooker is 14/40 in that stretch. Rooker comes into the game with a team-high 10 homers and 28 RBIs.
The Astros are hosting the Athletics today with an overall record of 18-25, which has them 5.5 games behind the Mariners for the AL West lead. So far, they have gone 8-5 in divisional games. Houston has won four straight games, and this streak includes taking the first three games of this series vs. the Athletics.
At home, the Astros are 10-12 this year and 8-13 on the road. As the favorite, the Astros are 14-19 this year and 4-6 as the underdog. So far, their overall series record is 5-7-1.
When it comes to the run line, the Astros have been a team to bet against this season. They are 17-26 against the run line, including a 9-13 mark at home. As a favorite, they are just 12-21 against the run line, but as an underdog, they are 5-5. Their average run differential is -0.4 runs per game, but that number jumps to -1.6 on the road.
With an over/under line of 8.5 runs, the Houston Astros have had their last two games go under that total. The Astros have played 25 games this season with over/under lines higher than 8.5 runs, and have gone 4-7 in those games. Overall, the Astros have an over/under record of 16-25 this season.
Cristian Javier Gets The Start For The Astros
Cristian Javier has been up and down in his first three starts of the season, but he has a chance to bounce back in his start against the A’s. He is coming off a rough outing against the Tigers, where he gave up 7 earned runs in just 1 and 1/3 innings of work. However, in his first start of the year, he went 7 innings and picked up a win vs. the Rangers.
Astros Offense Breakdown
Jeremy Peña has been swinging the bat well of late for the Astros, as he has gone 13/35 in his last nine games, including one home run. Overall, Peña is batting .333 for the season, and his four home runs are 10th in the league and 4th on the team. Kyle Tucker has also been hot of late, going 8/27 with four homers in his last eight games. Tucker’s 13 homers are the most in the league right now.
As a team, the Astros are averaging 4.5 runs per game and have the league’s top home run hitting offense. They also come into the game with the league’s top batting average and are the toughest team in the league to strike out. Houston’s team on-base percentage of .326 is 4th in the league.
Athletics vs Astros Prediction
Our predicted final score for this Astros vs. Athletics matchup is 5-4 in favor of the Astros. However, with the Astros being -213 on the money line, we recommend taking the over at 8.5 runs, as we see there being a good amount of offense in this one.
Looking at some of the starting pitcher projections, Joey Estes is predicted to finish with just four strikeouts, which is the second-worst among starters today. As for Cristian Javier, he is projected to finish with six K’s, which is the second-best among 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.
Last updated:May 16, 2024 Astros, Athletics