Athletics at Astros 9/12/19 - MLB Picks & Predictions

The Oakland Athletics conclude their four-game series on the road Thursday with the American League West leading Houston Astros. The Athletics routed the Astros on Tuesday 21-7. Oakland collected 25 hits on the night including six home runs, as Sean Murphy and Matt Olson each hit each hit two home runs. Oakland jumped out of the starting gate scoring seven runs in the first inning.

Houston has two home runs in the loss as Martin Maldonado and George Springer each went yard. The loss snapped Houston’s five-game winning streak, but the Astros lead the American League West by 9 ½ games over second place Oakland. The Astros became the third MLB team that had three straight games decided by 14 runs or more dating back to 1893.

Marcus Semien leads Oakland with a .278 batting average. Matt Chapman leads in home runs with 32 and in RBIs with 81. Semien leads in hits with 164. The A’s are averaging .250 at the plate while opposing hitters are averaging .262. On Thursday, the A’s will send Homer Bailey to the mound. The right-hander is 12-8 with an ERA of 4.87, 131 Ks and 49 BBs.

Michael Brantley leads the Astros with a .324 batting average and in hits with 171. Alex Bregman leads in home runs with 35 and in RBIs with 103. Houston has a .276 batting average while opponents are averaging .220. On Thursday, the Astros will send Justin Verlander to the mound. The right-hander is 18-5 with an ERA of 2.52, 264 Ks and 36 BBs.