Oakland Athletics vs Houston Astros Prediction, 8/30/2020 MLB Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Oakland Athletics vs Houston Astros

Date: Sunday, August 30, 2020

Location: Minute Maid Park in Houston, TX

TV: ATSW/NSCA

Odds/Point Spread: Athletics (-101) Astros (-109)

Robbie Grossman and the Oakland Athletics (22-10, 1st in AL West) go to Minute Maid Park on Sunday where they'll take on the Houston Astros (17-14, 2nd in AL West). The Astros open this game at -109 while the Athletics are priced at -101. The O/U is set at 9. The men taking the mound are Jesus Luzardo and Framber Valdez.

Key Oakland Athletics Injuries

8/21/2020 Burch Smith RP Forearm Expected to be out until at least Sep 22
8/10/2020 A.J RP Shoulder Expected to be out until at least Sep 1

Key Houston Astros Injuries

8/28/2020 Jose Urquidy SP Undisclosed Expected to be out until at least Sep 5
8/25/2020 Brad Peacock SP Shoulder Expected to be out until at least Sep 2
8/25/2020 Chris Devenski RP Arm Expected to be out until at least Sep 2
8/24/2020 Alex Bregman 3B Hamstring Expected to be out until at least Sep 12
8/23/2020 Yordan Alvarez DH Knee Out for the season

Useful Pitching Statistics

The Athletics have a 22-10 overall record this season. Luzardo has taken the hill for 45 innings and has earned 50 punchouts during his career. His ERA is 3.19 (16 ER's allowed) and he has a WHIP of 1.195. He has allowed 38 base knocks (7.6 hits per nine innings) with 16 walks. Luzardo (2-1 career mark) holds a FIP of 3.62 while facing 187 opposing batters during his time in the major leagues. The bullpen has an earned run average of 1.88 and they have given up 92 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .176 against the bullpen and they've struck out 137 hitters and walked 43 batters. As a team, Oakland allows 8 hits per nine innings while striking out 8.4 batters per nine innings. They are 3rd in the league in team earned run average at 3.35. The Athletics pitchers collectively have given up 258 base hits and 108 earned runs. They have allowed 31 home runs this season, ranking them 29th in the league. Oakland as a pitching staff has walked 96 batters and struck out 270. They have walked 3 men per 9 innings while striking out 8.4 per 9. They have a team WHIP of 1.22 and their FIP as a unit is 3.77.

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Hitting Statistics

As a team Oakland is hitting .223, good for 26th in the league. The Athletics hold a .408 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .325, which is good for 14th in baseball. They rank 24th in MLB with 7.4 hits per game. Robbie Grossman is hitting .263 with an on-base percentage of .427. He has 21 hits this season in 80 at bats with 15 runs batted in. He has a slugging percentage of .550 and an OPS+ of 171. Marcus Semien is hitting .234 this year and he has an on-base percentage of .291. He has totaled 32 hits and he has driven in 12 men in 137 at bats. His OPS+ is 87 while his slugging percentage is at .387. The Athletics have 236 hits, including 46 doubles and 45 home runs. Oakland has walked 138 times so far this season and they have struck out 322 times as a unit. They have left 216 men on base and have a team OPS of .733. They score 4.97 runs per contest and have scored a total of 159 runs this year.

Useful Pitching Statistics

In his career, Valdez has conceded 129 base hits while he has totaled 142 strikeouts in 146 innings. He has allowed 65 earned runs while holding a WHIP of 1.411 and a FIP of 4.3. He has a SO/W ratio of 1.84 and he has gone up against 637 hitters so far in his pro baseball career. Valdez (11-10 win-loss mark in his career) holds a 4.01 ERA and has allowed 8.0 hits per nine innings. The bullpen has an earned run average of 4.40 and they have given up 124 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .220 against the Astros bullpen. Their relievers have struck out 127 batters and walked 74 opposing hitters. As a team, Houston allows 8 hits per nine innings while striking out 8.6 batters per nine innings. They are 12th in the league in team earned run average at 4.29. The Astros pitchers as a team have surrendered 251 base knocks and 134 earned runs this season. They have given up 36 home runs this year, which ranks 22nd in Major League Baseball. Houston as a staff has walked 135 hitters and struck out 270 batters. They give up a walk 4.3 times per 9 innings while they strike out 8.6 per 9. Their team WHIP is 1.37 while their FIP as a staff is 4.51.

Hitting Statistics

As a team, they are batting .244, good for 19th in the league. The Astros hold a .418 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .326, which is good for 13th in baseball. They rank 13th in MLB with 8.3 hits per contest. Michael Brantley comes into this matchup batting .269 with an OBP of .347. He has 18 hits this year along with 9 RBI in 67 AB's. He maintains a slugging percentage of .433 with an OPS+ of 108. Carlos Correa is hitting .288 this season and he has an OBP of .368. He has collected 32 hits in 111 at bats while driving in 19 runs. He has an OPS+ of 112 and a slugging percentage of .423. The Astros as a unit have 258 base hits, including 62 doubles and 35 homers. Houston has walked 118 times this year and they have struck out on 237 occasions. They have had 202 men left on base and have an OPS of .744. They have scored 5.35 runs per game and totaled 166 runs this season.

Who will win tonight's Athletics/Astros MLB game against the spread?

Josh's Pick: Take the Astros (-109)

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