Marcus Semien and the surging Oakland Athletics will be taking the field against the Minnesota Twins at Target Field in a Sunday showdown. NBC Sports – California will broadcast this AL showdown and the game gets underway at 2:10 p.m. ET.
Oakland Athletics at Minnesota Twins Odds
Las Vegas has Oakland (+130) as the underdog to Minnesota (-140). You can play game’s total with current odds posted at -120 for over 10.5 runs and even money (+100) for under 10.5. There’s a runline of Athletics +1.5 (-170) and Twins -1.5 (+150) for this matchup.
The Twins are 59-38 straight up (SU) and 53-43 against the spread (ATS). They’ve gained 14.3 units for moneyline bettors and 7.7 units ATS. The Athletics are 57-42 SU and have gone 52-46 ATS. In total, the club has gained 10.7 units for bettors taking the moneyline and 3.5 units ATS.
Neither squad has established itself as a strong over/under play this year. Minnesota games have had an over/under record of 46-45-5 so far in 2019. The Athletics have an over/under record of 47-48-3.
Right-hander Daniel Mengden will get the start for Oakland. Mengden is 5-1 with a 4.21 ERA and 34 strikeouts. He’s 1-0 with five strikeouts and a 7.94 ERA against Minnesota this year.
The Twins will deploy righty Michael Pineda (6-5, 4.38 ERA) to the mound. Pineda has 87 punchouts and 16 walks as well as a WHIP of 1.17. Pineda has yet to face the Athletics this year and did not pitch in the majors in 2018.
Oakland’s pitchers have allowed 4.2 runs per game and its starters own a 3.99 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and 6.82 K/9. The bullpen has an ERA of 3.89, along with a K-per-9 of 8.87.
The Athletics offense has slashed .250/.324/.451 on its way to 5.2 runs scored per game this season, including 6.3 runs per game over the team’s last 10 games and 6.4 per game over the team’s last five contests (4-1 SU).
Shortstop Marcus Semien and right fielder Ramon Laureano continue to lead Oakland’s hitters. Semien is hitting .271/.351/.461 with 15 home runs, 50 RBIs and 69 runs scored, while Laureano is hitting .287 with 20 homers, 53 RBIs, 65 runs and 12 stolen bases.
In the home-team dugout, Minnesota’s pitching staff has allowed 4.5 runs per game overall in 2019. The team’s starters have an ERA of 3.69, a WHIP of 1.19 and a strikeouts-per-nine of 8.2. The bullpen has a 4.36 ERA, 1.37 WHIP and 9.4 K/9.
The Minnesota offense has produced 5.6 runs per contest, including 4.1 per game over its last 10 games and 3.8 per game over its last five. The team’s hit .255/.344/.491 over its last five games and is 1-4 SU during that stretch.
The Twins’ batters have been led by shortstop Jorge Polanco and right fielder Max Kepler. Polanco is hitting .305/.361/.499 with 13 home runs, 44 RBIs and 58 runs scored, and Kepler’s line is .261/.330/.515 with 23 homers, 60 RBIs and 59 runs.
The Athletics have gained 1.3 units and are 37-35 ATS when facing a righty starter this season. The over has cashed in 33 of those games, compared to 37 that’ve gone under against right-handed starting pitchers. On the other hand, the Twins have netted 15.4 units and are 40-34 ATS when facing a right-handed starting pitcher. The over’s hit in 34 of those games, as opposed to 37 that’ve cashed the under.
Athletics vs. Twins Free MLB Tip
Predictions: SU Winner – Twins, ATS Winner – Athletics, O/U – UNDER
Betting Trends
- The over has hit in three of Oakland’s last seven games.
- The Athletics have won eight of their last nine games SU while the Twins have dropped five of their last six.
- The Oakland defense has permitted two errors over the last 10 games, compared to 10 errors for Minnesota over its last 10.
- The Athletics have hit 22 home runs in their last 10 games, including 12 over their last five.
- The Athletics have a team OPS of .776 this season and an OPS of .760 against right-handed pitchers. The Twins’ OPS sits at .832 overall and .822 against righties.
