After a rough three-game stop at Kansas City which almost came to blows with the opposing bench, the Oakland Athletics now pay a visit to divisional rival Los Angeles. The defending AL West champion Angels have started their season on a sour note, losing seven of their first 12 games. But a date with a divisional rival may be what they need to get through their rough patch.
There’s plenty more baseball to go around. Check out our preview for tomorrow’s Cardinals vs. Nationals.
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Oakland Athletics vs. Los Angeles Angels Preview
Where: Angel Stadium, Anaheim, CA
When: Monday, April 20, 10:05 PM ET
Line: Oakland Athletics (+135) at Los Angeles Angels (-150); total 8.0 –view all MLB lines
Betting on the Oakland Athletics
A change of opponents should have Oakland’s Brett Lawrie relieved after a tense series at Kansas City. He was hit by a 99 MPH fastball on Saturday and a 100 MPH fast ball was thrown behind him on Sunday as revenge for injuring Kansas City’s Alcides Escobar on a late slide Friday.
[sc:MLB240banner ]Lawrie has experienced some big games against AL West rivals, the Angels. He has three home runs and three doubles in his last 10 games against Los Angeles, but is yet to face starter Matt Shoemaker.
Designated hitter Billy Butler went 0-for-2 in Sunday night’s 4-2 loss at Kansas City. But he’s 1-for-3 with two RBIs and has walked twice against Shoemaker. You can expect Butler to bounce back after breaking his season-opening 12-game hitting streak.
Kendall Graveman takes the ball for the A’s tonight. He earned his first career win after tossing 5 1/3 scoreless innings at Houston on Tuesday. That was a big improvement from allowing eight runs in just 3 1/3 innings in his last start against Texas on April 9. Considering he throws as well as he did against Houston, Graveman should be able to exploit Los Angeles’ ailing batting average (.217), which ranks 12th in the American League.
The total has gone under in four of Oakland’s last five on the road.
The Angels are struggling at the plate this season. But Mike Trout is having no such trouble among Los Angeles’ batters. He’s currently hitting .364 with nine RBIs, both team-highs. Trout had hit safely over the first 10 games, but was held hitless in eight at-bats over his last two games at Houston. Johnny Giavotella, the only other Angels batter hitting above .213, is on a three-game hitting streak.
Despite Trout’s and Giavotella’s strong showings, Los Angeles ranks 10th in the AL in runs scored (40) this early into the season. That may be due to Albert Pujols (105 RBIs last year, second among the Angels) and cleanup hitter Matt Joyce batting just .186 and .184 respectively. The Angels are 1-for-16 with runners in scoring position over their last three games.
But the Angels may not need much run support with Shoemaker on the mound. Shoemaker is 9-0 with a 1.92 ERA in his last 10 starts, all Los Angeles wins. He threw seven shutout innings in his lone start against the A’s in August 2014. Shoemaker hasn’t looked that dominant recently, though. He’s allowed six runs over 12 1/3 innings in his first two starts of the season.
Los Angeles is on a six-game home losing streak dating back to 2014.
