Oakland Athletics vs Houston Astros Prediction, 9/12/2024 MLB Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Oakland Athletics vs Houston Astros

Date: Thursday, September 12, 2024

Location: Minute Maid Park in Houston, TX

TV: NBC Sports California

Odds/Point Spread: Oakland (+200) Houston (-245)

Minute Maid Park is the location where the Houston Astros (77-67) will attempt to defeat the Oakland Athletics (63-82) on Thursday. The moneyline on this contest has Oakland at +200 while Houston is priced at -245. The total comes in at O8.0. The pitchers taking the mound will be Mitch Spence and Framber Valdez.

The Athletics have earned 213 two-baggers as a squad and have hit 183 baseballs out of the stadium. Oakland owns a slugging percentage of .398 and have been called out on strikes 1,339 times, while drawing a walk on 447 occasions. As a unit, the Oakland Athletics are notching 4.1 runs per contest, which is 26th in the league. They have accounted for 565 RBI's and 1,135 hits for the year, and their team batting average is .234. They have earned 588 runs scored while having a team OBP of .303.

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The Athletics have a team earned run average of 4.32 on the campaign (24th in MLB), and their staff has struck out 1,141 batters. Athletics pitchers have surrendered 146 home runs and also 681 runs in total (23rd in MLB). Their pitching staff has walked 482 players from the other team and their FIP is 4.18 as a squad this season. Oakland has surrendered 1,223 base knocks (8.5 per 9 innings) and 619 earned runs. They have a strikeout to walk ratio of 2.37 and their pitching staff sits with a WHIP of 1.32.

The Athletics have dispatched 472 relief pitchers to the mound for the year. The bullpen pitchers have inherited 218 base runners this season with 32.1% of those players crossed the plate. They have accumulated 30 saves this year and have blown 20 of 50 save chances. The Athletics bullpen have earned a save percentage of 60.0% and has come into the game in 141 save situations. The relief pitchers have earned 88 holds on the campaign (7th in baseball). Athletics bullpen pitchers have entered the game with runners on 153 times in addition to having 150 appearances in high leverage situations.

The Oakland Athletics have earned 3,865 putouts this season, in addition to 1,212 assists and 79 errors. Their fielding percentage is at .985 which ranks 19th in pro baseball, and have 127 double plays. The Athletics have transformed 69.2% of balls in play into outs out of their 11,595 innings, ranking them 21st in MLB.

Spence (7-9 career win-loss mark) sits with a FIP of 4.36 and he has gone up against 556 opposing batters in the major leagues. He has given up 137 base hits (9.5 hits per 9 innings) and has 41 free passes. His earned run average is 4.43 (64 earned runs allowed) and his WHIP is 1.368. Spence has taken the ball for 130 innings and has earned 111 K's during his career.

The Houston Astros have earned a team on-base percentage of .321 and a batting average of .261 on the year. They have been rung up on 1,062 occasions (27th in MLB) and have recorded 1,290 base knocks. Houston has accumulated 170 home runs for the year as well as 634 RBIs. The Astros have a team SLG% of .418 and they are scoring 4.61 runs per game (12th in the league). They have hit 232 two-baggers, while getting a free base 393 times and putting up 664 runs.

The Astros hold a team WHIP of 1.248 and are the owners of a FIP of 4.07 as a pitching staff for the year. They currently have a strikeout to walk ratio of 9.30 (1,317 strikeouts vs 504 walks). They sit at 2nd in baseball as a staff in total hits surrendered with 1,093. They have yielded 162 home runs and they surrender 4.06 runs per 9 innings (5th in MLB). The Houston pitching staff have surrendered 578 runs on the season while holding an ERA of 3.72 (529 earned runs yielded).

Houston relievers hold an inherited score percentage of 28.7% out of their 129 inherited base runners. Their relievers have come in 132 times in high leverage situations in addition to 87 occasions with runners on base. With 138 save situations, the Astros have amassed 80 holds and also 22 blown saves. They are ranked 19th in baseball with a save rate of 61.4%, and they have dispatched 455 bullpen pitchers onto the field over the course of the season. Houston has had bullpen pitchers step onto the mound in 57 save chances and they have tallied 35 saves.

The Houston Astros have turned 118 double plays and have earned a fielding percentage of .986 (10th in the majors). The Astros have accrued 1,169 assists, 72 errors and have a total of 3,840 putouts on the season. Out of their 11,520 innings on the field, the Astros are sitting with a defensive efficiency of 70.7% (7th in baseball).

Valdez (67-40 career mark) is the owner of a 3.32 earned run average and has allowed 7.5 hits per nine innings. His K/BB ratio is 2.69 and he has gone up against 3,601 hitters so far in his career. He has conceded a total of 321 earned runs while holding a WHIP of 1.195 and a FIP of 3.3. During his career, Valdez has surrendered 723 hits while he has totaled 850 K's in 869 frames.

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Oakland (+200)

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