Albert
·
1d
My Prediction
San Francisco Giants by 2The Giants have been the belles of this baseball ball thus far, strolling into the park with a 47-42 win record over the A's lousy 37-53. But don't take the Giants' recent successes as an indicator of a possible win at their doorstep. I mean, the last time these teams crossed paths, the picture was pretty mixed.
Let's focus on the pitchers. The Giants are trotting Hayden Birdsong onto the mound for his 20th appearance of the season. With his somewhat moderate ERA of 4.54 and WHIP 1.43, Birdsong's strikeouts-per-nine-innings (K/9) figure is a decent 9.4, but not astounding.
Meanwhile, the A's are pinning their hopes on Jacob Lopez. The man has a better ERA of 4.09, a WHIP of 1.41 and a higher K/9 of 11.5. So far, he’s had 12 appearances and will be eager to add a win to the mix.
Looking at the heavy hitters, the Giants bring players like Mike Yastrzemski and Willy Adames to the plate, who've been launching balls like they've been pumped full of rocket fuel, boasting batting averages of 0.284 and 0.258 respectively.
Meanwhile, Athletics’ batter Brent Rooker, with batting average of 0.286 and 15 RBIs, is trying to swing his team into contention, while Jacob Wilson has been contributing his 0.295 batting average which is the team's best. And Nick Kurtz, with his 19 RBIs, is definitely not someone to bet against.
Let’s not forget the environmental factors, folks! Oakland Coliseum is the venue, favoring pitchers more than batters due to the lower than average Park Factor. This means, pitchers might have a bit more luck keeping those home run counts low.
Alright, let's cut to the chase. My instinct, plus my dry witty gut, tells me to side with the form guide. The Giants are the favorites on paper, and based on their starting pitcher I truly believe they'll clench their teeth and pull this one out of the bag, but it won’t be a grand win.
Albert’s Prediction: San Francisco Giants by 2