Houston Astros vs Oakland Athletics Prediction, 7/9/2022 MLB Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Houston Astros vs Oakland Athletics

Date: Saturday, July 9, 2022

Location: Oakland Coliseum in Oakland, CA

TV: NBC Sports California

The Oakland Athletics (28-56) will play the Houston Astros (53-28) at Oakland Coliseum on Saturday. The starting pitchers are Framber Valdez and Cole Irvin.

Houston is slugging .429 and have struck out 601 times, while being walked on 288 occasions. They have accrued 355 runs batted in in addition to 648 base knocks this season, and their team batting average sits at .241. The Astros have hit 131 doubles as a squad and have smacked 119 balls out of the stadium. They have notched a total of 363 runs while holding a team OBP of .320. As a unit, the Houston Astros are earning 4.5 runs per game, which puts them at 12th in the league.

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The Astros have a team ERA of 3.02 on the campaign (3rd in MLB), and the staff has rung up 712 hitters. They have a strikeout to walk ratio of 3.00 and the pitching staff has recorded a WHIP of 1.11. Astros pitchers have conceded 74 home runs and 273 runs in total (3rd in baseball). They have walked 237 opposing batters and their FIP comes in at 3.60 as a unit for the season.

The Astros relief pitchers have a save rate of 80.0% and stepped onto the hill in 83 save situations. The relief pitchers have inherited 79 base runners so far this season with 25.3% of those players earned a run for their team. Astros relief pitchers have stepped onto the hill with players on base 53 times in addition to having 80 appearances in high leverage situations. The Astros have sent 246 relief pitchers to the mound on the campaign. The relievers have 53 holds for the season (6th in MLB). They have accumulated 24 saves this year and have blown 6 of their 30 chances to get a save.

The Houston Astros have a tally of 2,153 putouts this year, in addition to 644 assists and 40 errors. Their fielding percentage is currently at .986 which is 12th in the majors, and they have turned 61 double plays. The Astros have converted 72.6% of baseballs in play into outs out of their 6,459 innings on the diamond, which has them sitting at 2nd in professional baseball.

Valdez has taken the ball for 414 innings and has earned 396 K's so far in his MLB career. Valdez (32-20 career mark) is the owner of a FIP of 3.87 and he has gone up against 1,754 opposing batters in the major leagues. His ERA is 3.48 (160 ER's allowed) and his career WHIP is 1.268. He has conceded 345 hits (7.5 hits per 9 innings) and has had 180 walks.

The Oakland Athletics have tallied an OBP of .274 in addition to a batting average of .211 this year. They have been called out on strikes on 707 occasions (10th in baseball) and are sitting with 576 base hits. Oakland has 60 home runs over the course of the season as well as 246 RBIs. The Athletics have a team slugging % of .329 and they are scoring 3.17 runs per game (30th in the league). They have hit 129 two-baggers, while taking a walk 212 times and racking up 266 runs.

The Oakland pitching staff have yielded 377 runs so far this season while holding a team ERA of 4.30 (350 earned runs surrendered). They have surrendered 93 HR's and they relinquish 4.63 runs per 9 innings (22nd in the league). The Athletics have a team WHIP of 1.330 and have a FIP of 4.30 as a staff this season. They have earned a strikeout to walk ratio of 2.30 (628 strikeouts against 273 free passes). They rank 22nd in baseball as a pitching staff in total hits given up with 702.

With 86 save situations, the Athletics have recorded 52 holds in addition to 14 blown saves. Oakland has called on bullpen pitchers to take the mound in 32 save opportunities and they have converted 18 saves. Their relievers have stepped onto the mound 90 times in high leverage situations in addition to 103 occasions with runners on. Oakland bullpen pitchers have an inherited score percentage of 29.4% of 160 inherited base runners. They are ranked 26th in the league with a save percentage of 56.3%, and they have sent 285 relief pitchers to the hill this season.

The Oakland Athletics have gotten 74 double plays and hold a fielding percentage of .982 (23rd in MLB). The Athletics have racked up 762 assists, 53 errors and have accumulated 2,200 putouts so far this year. In their 6,600 innings on the field, the Athletics have accumulated a defensive efficiency of 69.6% (15th in baseball).

So far in his pro baseball career, Irvin has conceded 329 hits while accumulating 216 punch outs in 307 innings. Irvin (15-23 career win-loss record) has a 4.37 earned run average while conceding 9.6 hits per nine innings. He has surrendered 149 ER's while holding a WHIP of 1.313 and having a FIP of 4.4. He has a K/BB ratio of 2.92 and he has gone up against 1,311 batters in his career.

Who will win tonight's MLB game against the spread or moneyline?

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Oakland

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