Oakland Athletics at Los Angeles Angels 8/1/21 - MLB Picks & Predictions

By: Lance |

Last Updated: 07/31/2021 at 9:29 PM ET

The Oakland Athletics travel on the road to Angel Stadium to close out a four-game series with the Los Angeles Angels. Oakland won the opening two games of the series after splitting a two-game series with the Padres, they trail the Astros by 5.5 games in the AL West at 59-46. The Angels have been decimated by injuries this season and with losses in three of their last four games have dipped to 51-52 and are 12.5 games back in the AL West.

Oakland has struggled at the plate this season and comes in hitting just .233 as a team that ranks 23rd in the MLB while they’re scoring 4.41 runs per game which ranks 16th in scoring offense. First baseman Matt Olson has had one of the best seasons in his career, he leads the team with 27 homeruns, 67 RBIs, and hitting .280. They’ll need more from Matt Chapman after the all-star break, he’s hitting just .219 with 14 homeruns and 47 RBIs.

James Kaprielian will get the start for the A’s, he’s having a solid start to the year going 5-4 with a 3.24 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP in 72.1 innings of work this season. Kapriellian had a rough outing in his last start surviving just 4 ⅓ innings allowing six runs on seven hits while striking out six and issuing a walk. It’s his rookie season and Oakland has been careful to not have him throw too many innings in his first year. 

Los Angeles, even with the injury to Mike Trout, has been one of the better offenses in the MLB this season hitting .256 and scoring 4.76 runs per game which ranks 9th in scoring offense. Shohei Ohtani is leading the charge for the Angels, he’s having a season that is unheard of in MLB history with an MLB high 37 homeruns and is third in the league with 81 RBIs. Not to mention his 3.04 ERA in 80 innings on the mound.

The left-handed Reid Detmers will get the first start of his career for the Angels, the 22-year-old has been very solid in the minors and was a first-round draft pick in 2020. Scouts have raved about his command and although he doesn’t throw hard with a 90-94 fastball he hopes to be a solid future piece for the Angels.
 

Although Detmers could end up being a very solid piece, it will be his first start in the MLB and at just 22-year-old that is a big step. The Athletics need to hold pace with the Astros in the AL West, and with the Angels struggling due to injuries to Trout and potentially Ohtani whose listed as day-to-day, they are unable to generate enough offense. Kaprielian is able to work through the injured lineup and have a solid outing leading to a win. Final score prediction, Athletics win 5-4. 
 

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