The Oakland Athletics (4-18) take one of the lightest-hitting offenses in the league on the road to face the Los Angeles Angels (11-11) at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on Monday for the opener of a four-game series.
The Athletics are in the midst of a seven-game road trip. They won only one out of three in their last series against the Rangers, dropping the finale 5-2 on Sunday at Globe Life Field. Shea Langeliers was 1 for 3 with a home run and two RBIs.
The Angels are in the midst of a seven-game homestand. They won two of three against the Royals in their last series, taking the finale 4-3 on Sunday at Angel Stadium of Anaheim. Mike Trout went 3 for 4 with a solo home run and two doubles. Shohei Ohtani added a home run and two RBIs.
HEAD-TO-HEAD
The Angels have won two of three in the season series between the AL West rivals, including a 6-0 victory in their most recent meeting on April 2 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. Tyler Anderson threw six scoreless innings to get the win.
ON THE MOUND
Ken Waldichuk (0-2, 10.20 ERA) is in line to take the mound for Oakland. The left-hander threw five scoreless innings in his last start, a 4-0 road defeat against the Cubs on Tuesday. He gave up five hits while striking out five and walking three in the no-decision.
Waldichuk has made one previous start against the Angels this season, a 6-0 home loss on April 2. He surrendered six runs on nine hits over 5.2 innings, striking out four and walking one. For Los Angeles, southpaw Jose Suarez (0-1, 10.80 ERA) is on the mound. It’s his first appearance of the season against the Athletics.
Suarez made two appearances against the Athletics in 2022, both as the starter, striking out 13 and walking four over 12 innings (2-0, 0.00). In his last start on Tuesday, Suarez took a no-decision on the road against the Yankees. He threw 3.1 innings and gave up two runs on three hits, striking out one and walking six in the 5-2 victory.
AT THE PLATE
The Oakland offense is averaging 3.4 runs per game for the season, fourth lowest in MLB, with a slash line of .226/.308/.353. Esteury Ruiz leads the team in OPS at .741. The right fielder is slashing .296/.375/.366 with nine RBIs and eight runs over 22 games.
Over the last five games, however, Oakland has averaged only 2.4 runs a game while performing worse across the board (.176/.259/.294). Against southpaws like Suarez this season, the A’s have a .703 OPS. Ruiz also is the team’s most productive hitter against left-handers with a 1.144 OPS in 19 at-bats.
Los Angeles is slashing .241/.327/.388 for the season and averaging 4.8 runs per game. Trout leads the team with a .981 OPS. The right fielder has five home runs, 13 RBIs, and 15 runs scored with a slash line of .306/.425/.556.
The Halos have ann .815 OPS against left-handers in 2023, fifth highest in the league. With a 1.461 OPS over 17 at-bats, Hunter Renfroe has been their best hitter against left-handers.
HOME AND AWAY
Oakland is 2-8 in away games in 2023, scoring 3.9 runs per game while allowing 8.7 runs. Los Angeles has gone 5-4 at Angel Stadium of Anaheim this season, averaging 5.1 runs per game while surrendering 4.8. Los Angeles is 6-4 in the last 10 games between the teams at Angel Stadium of Anaheim with an average scoreline of 3.6-2.9.
STANDINGS UPDATE
The Athletics are fifth in the AL West, nine games behind the division-leading Rangers. The Angels are third in the AL West, three games behind the Rangers.
SportsTips’ MLB Pick:
LA Angels (-210)
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*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
