Houston Astros vs Oakland Athletics Prediction, 4/2/2021 MLB Pick, Tips and Odds
Game: Houston Astros vs Oakland Athletics
Date: Friday, April 2, 2021
Location: RingCentral Coliseum in Oakland, CA
TV: NBC Sports California
Odds/Point Spread: Houston (+120) Oakland (-130)
Cristian Javier and the Houston Astros (29-31, 2nd in AL West last year) go to RingCentral Coliseum on Friday where they'll take on the Oakland Athletics (36-24, 1st in AL West last season). The odds on this game have the Astros coming in at +120 and the Athletics are at -130. The O/U opens at 8.5. The pitchers expected to start will be Cristian Javier and Jesus Luzardo.
Houston had a slugging % of .408 and were called out on strikes 440 times, while drawing a walk on 192 occasions. They recorded 268 RBI's as well as 478 base knocks in the prior season, and their average at the plate was .240. The Astros hit 103 doubles as a team and knocked 69 balls out of the park. They earned 279 runs scored and held an OBP of .312. As a team, the Houston Astros notched 4.7 runs per game, which ranked them 14th in MLB.
The Astros compiled a team earned run average of 4.31 over the course of last season (13th in the league), and their staff rung up 526 batters. Their K/BB ratio was 2.42 and their pitching staff finished with a WHIP of 1.31. Astros pitchers surrendered 70 home runs and 275 runs in total (17th in MLB). Their pitching staff walked 217 players from the other team and their FIP was 4.33 as a squad over the course of last year. Astros bullpen pitchers stepped onto the hill with runners on in 75 outings as well as 75 games with high leverage. The relief pitchers recorded 28 holds for the prior year (16th in baseball). The Astros relief pitchers compiled a save rate of 55.2% and stepped onto the mound in 58 save situations. They tallied 16 saves in the previous season and did not convert 13 of 29 save chances. The relief pitchers inherited 115 base runners for the previous season with 28.7% of those runners crossed the plate. The Astros sent 193 relief pitchers to the mound over the course of the prior season.
Cristian Javier surrendered 36 base knocks in 54.1 innings in which he pitched last year. His ERA was at 3.48 and he punched out 54 opposing batters. He gave up 21 earned runs last season with a strikeout to walk ratio of 3.0. He conceded 6 hits per 9 innings and his WHIP was 0.994. Javier had a FIP of 4.94 and his ERA+ was 129. Javier (5-2 career mark) has a FIP of 4.94 while he has faced 214 opposing hitters during his time in the majors. He has surrendered 36 base knocks (6.0 hits per nine innings) and has 18 free passes. His earned run average is 3.48 (21 earned runs allowed) and he has a career WHIP of 0.994. Javier has taken the hill for 54 innings and has totaled 54 punch outs so far in his pro baseball career.
The Oakland Athletics had an OBP of .322 in addition to a team batting average of .225 in the previous season. They were called out on strikes on 524 occasions (15th in the league) and notched a total of 430 base knocks. Oakland had a total of 71 long balls last year in addition to 264 runs batted in. The Athletics held a team slugging % of .396 and they had an average of 4.57 runs per outing (17th in baseball). They put up 91 two-baggers, while walking 238 times as well as putting up 274 runs.
The Oakland pitching staff given up 232 runs in the previous season while holding a team ERA of 3.77 (216 earned runs conceded). They allowed 69 HR's and they surrendered 4.05 runs per 9 innings (5th in baseball). The Athletics finished with a team WHIP of 1.235 and had a FIP of 4.02 as a squad in the prior season. Their K/BB ratio was 3.07 (506 strikeouts vs 165 walks). They were ranked 19th in MLB as a staff in total hits given up with 471. Oakland called on relievers to step onto the mound in 55 save situations and they recorded 17 saves. They were ranked 2nd in the league with a save percentage of 81.0%, and they dispatched 181 relief pitchers to the hill last year. Their relievers came into 61 games with high leverage and also 51 outings with runners on. Oakland relievers had an inherited score rate of 31.0% out of their 72 inherited base runners. Ending the season with 21 save chances, the Athletics accrued 34 holds and also 4 blown saves.
Luzardo earned a K/BB ratio of 3.5 with 59 total punch outs and he held an ERA+ of 98. He pitched in 59.0 innings last year while giving up 8.8 hits per 9 innings. Luzardo allowed 58 base knocks while he conceded 27 earned runs (4.12 ERA). His WHIP sat at 1.27 and he earned a FIP of 4.19 last season. Thus far in his career, Luzardo has given up 63 base knocks while totaling 75 punch outs in 71 innings. He has given up a total of 29 ER's while holding a WHIP of 1.169 and a FIP of 3.9. His strikeout to walk ratio is 3.75 and he has faced 294 opposing hitters so far in his MLB career. Luzardo (3-2 record in his career) has a 3.68 ERA while allowing 8.0 hits per 9 innings.
So what is Tonights Parlay prediction?
Parlay's Pundit's Pick: Take Oakland (-130) and under 8.5 runs
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Additional Resources:
Oakland Athletics - Twitter
Houston Astros - Twitter