Tuesday MLB Odds, Picks, Preview for Athletics vs. Rangers: Bet Oakland to Overcome Recent Slide (June 22)
Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images. Pictured: Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Cole Irvin.
- The Oakland Athletics face the Texas Rangers in the second game of their series in MLB action.
- Oakland suffered an 8-3 loss on Monday in the opening meeting, but is 13-5 overall so far in June.
- Mike Ianniello explains below why he's backing the Athletics to pick up the road victory.
Athletics vs. Rangers Odds
| Athletics Odds | -129 |
| Rangers Odds | +110 |
| Over/Under | 9 (-121 / +100) |
| Time | 8:05 p.m. ET |
| How To Watch | YouTube |
The Oakland Athletics have dropped three games in a row, but prior to that were one of the hottest teams in baseball. Even with the recent slide, the A’s are 13-5 during the month of June and just one game back of the Houston Astros in the AL West.
In contrast, the Texas Rangers are at the bottom of the AL West standings and only 4-13 in June. However, the Rangers took game one of this series with an 8-3 on Monday, powered by a five-run first inning.
Let's see where the betting value lies ahead ofTuesday's game in Texas.
Irvin Riding Rollercoaster on Mound for Oakland
It has been and up-and-down season for left-hander Cole Irvin in his first year with Oakland. After two seasons and just 19 appearances with the Philadelphia Phillies, Irvin was traded to the A’s and has made 14 starts.
Every time Irvin starts to show signs of success, a blow-up outing has closely followed closely. Irvin has posted six starts where he allowed just one run or fewer. However, he has also had six starts where he's allowed at least four runs.
Overall, Irvin is 4-7 with a 3.89 ERA and 3.86 FIP. He has just a 6.22 K/9 and looks more to generate soft contact and ground balls with his sinking fastball and changeup.
Oakland’s lineup has been red hot since the start of June. During that time, the A's have scored the third most runs in the league. They rank seventh in batting average, fifth in wOBA and fourth in wRC+ since June 1.
Matt Olson has been crushing the ball, batting .420 with a 1.265 OPS in June, and Matt Chapman, Mark Canha and Tony Kemp have all gotten hot as well.
Lefty Hearn Gets Spot Start for Struggling Texas
Late Monday, Texas scratched Jordan Lyles from today’s start and instead will go with Taylor Hearn (LHP) to make his first start of the season. Hearn will likely only give the Rangers 2-3 innings, as he has made just one career start, which came back in 2019.
Hearn has made 22 appearances out of the bullpen this year, posting a 4.84 ERA and .268 batting average against. Three full innings is the most he has pitched in a game this season, meaning this will mostly be a bullpen game. The Texas relievers rank 22nd in bullpen ERA this season.
Offensively, the Rangers lineup is pretty lackluster. They rank just 24th in runs per game; 25th in wRC+;and, 27th in wOBA.
Joey Gallo is the big name in this lineup. However, he has really struggled and is batting just .217 with a .779 OPS. Instead, it has been rookie Adolis Garcia who has slugged 18 home runs and has a .839 OPS this season.
Athletics-Rangers Pick
Irvin has been a hard person to bet on, as he either looks great or gets completely shelled. The good news is, you don’t usually have to sweat out a bet on him. You either win it with ease or lose it immediately.
I am going to back Irvin to have a good game against an uninspiring Texas offense, especially at home where it averages just 3.74 runs per game.
Hearn is making just his second career start, and the first time did not go well, where he allowed five runs in less than an inning. The Rangers lack bullpen depth and will struggle to keep the Oakland lineup quiet all game.
The Athletics have advantage in starting pitching, plus a sizable edge at the plate. Oakland is the much better team and I like it to bounce back in the second game of the series.
Pick: Oakland ML (-129 — play to -135)
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