Oakland Athletics vs Boston Red Sox Prediction, 7/8/2023 MLB Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Oakland Athletics vs Boston Red Sox

Date: Saturday, July 8, 2023

Location: Fenway Park in Boston, MA

TV: NESN

Odds/Point Spread: Oakland (+170) Boston (-200)

The Oakland Athletics (25-64) are traveling to Fenway Park on Saturday where they will meet the Boston Red Sox (45-43). The line on this matchup has the Athletics at +170 while the Red Sox are priced at -200. The betting total comes in at 9. The pitchers taking the mound will be Luis Medina and Brandon Walter.

The Athletics have hit 116 doubles as a squad and have knocked 81 baseballs out of the stadium. Oakland has a slugging % of .350 and have struck out 819 times, while drawing a walk on 288 occasions. As a team, the Oakland Athletics are earning 3.6 runs per game, which is 30th in the league. They have 310 runs batted in as well as 646 hits for the season, and their average at the plate is sitting at .220. They have racked up 320 runs scored and hold an on-base percentage of .298.

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Their strikeout to walk ratio is 1.79 and the pitching staff holds a collective WHIP of 1.56. Athletics pitchers have allowed 126 home runs and also 556 runs in total (30th in the league). Oakland has surrendered 833 base hits (9.6 per 9 innings) as well as 523 earned runs. The Athletics have a team ERA of 6.00 this year (30th in the league), and their staff has struck out 700 batters. They have walked 390 opposing players and their FIP is 5.30 as a unit for the season.

Athletics pitchers have stepped onto the hill with players on base 106 times in addition to having 103 appearances in high leverage situations. The relief pitchers have 24 holds on the season (29th in baseball). The Athletics relief pitchers have compiled a save rate of 48.3% and has entered the game in 54 save situations. They have compiled 14 saves on the campaign and have blown 15 out of their 29 chances to get a save. The bullpen pitchers have inherited 162 runners so far this season with 41.4% of them ended up scoring. The Athletics have sent 295 relief pitchers to the hill this season.

The Oakland Athletics have amassed 2,355 putouts on the year, as well as 705 assists and 53 errors. Their fielding rate is currently at .983 which has them ranked 27th in MLB, and have a total of 63 double plays. The Athletics have transformed 67.7% of balls hit into play into outs in their 7,065 innings on the diamond, ranking them 28th in professional baseball.

Medina (2-7 career mark) holds a FIP of 5.92 and he has faced 244 batters in the major leagues. He has conceded 57 base hits (9.6 hits per nine innings) with 31 walks. His earned run average is 6.37 (38 ER's allowed) and he has a WHIP of 1.640. Medina has taken the ball for 53 innings and has tallied 49 strikeouts in his MLB career.

The Boston Red Sox have accumulated a team OBP of .331 in addition to a batting average of .262 on the season. They have struck out on 718 occasions (20th in baseball) and are sitting with 791 hits. Boston is sitting with 90 home runs on the season and 411 runs batted in. The Red Sox have a SLG% of .424 and they score 4.89 runs per contest (7th in baseball). They have hit 197 two-baggers, while taking a walk 283 times as well as putting up 430 runs.

The Red Sox have a team WHIP of 1.298 and have a FIP of 4.39 as a pitching staff on the year. They are currently ranked 24th in the league as a pitching staff in total hits allowed with 758. The Boston pitching staff have given up 415 runs on the season while having an ERA of 4.41 (381 earned runs yielded). They currently have a strikeout to walk ratio of 8.60 (742 strikeouts vs 252 walks). They have allowed 113 home runs and they allow 4.80 runs per 9 innings (21st in the league).

Boston relief pitchers have an inherited score percentage of 31.8% out of their 88 inherited base runners. Their relief pitchers have stepped onto the hill 72 times in high leverage situations and also on 58 occasions with runners on base. With 70 save situations, the Red Sox have tallied 38 holds in addition to 8 blown saves. They rank 3rd in baseball with a save rate of 75.0%, and they have sent 266 bullpen pitchers to the hill so far this season. Boston has had bullpen pitchers enter the game in 32 save chances and they have earned 24 saves.

In 7,002 innings on the field, the Red Sox have earned a defensive efficiency of 68.6% (19th in pro baseball). The Boston Red Sox have turned 74 double plays and own a fielding percentage of .982 (29th in pro baseball). The Red Sox have recorded 781 assists, 58 errors and have earned a total of 2,334 putouts on the season.

Walter (0-0 career mark) has earned a 3.52 ERA while conceding 7.0 hits per 9 innings. He has a strikeout to walk ratio of 0.67 and he has faced 32 batters in his career. He has given up a total of 3 ER's while earning a WHIP of 1.174 and a FIP of 5.6. During his MLB career, Walter has given up 6 hits while he has earned 2 K's in 7 innings pitched.

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Oakland (+170)

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