Astros vs Athletics Picks and Odds (April 2nd)
By Blair Johnson in MLB Baseball
Published:
- The Oakland A’s (0-1) are -137 home favorites over the Houston Astros (1-0) on Friday, April 2nd (9:40 pm ET)
- Jesus Luzardo will be on the bump for the home team, while highly-touted Cristian Javier will start for the Astros
- Read below for a preview and betting prediction for the game
The Oakland A’s host the Houston Astros in the second game of a four-game series, Friday. Zack Greinke looked in midseason form during Thursday’s season opener. The 2009 AL Cy Young Award-winner went six innings, allowing only three hits and no walks while striking out four in Houston’s club-record ninth straight win on opening day. Now, Oakland is hoping its bats can come alive Friday.
First pitch is slated for 9:40 pm ET at the Oakland Coliseum.
Astros vs A’s Odds
| Team | Moneyline at at DraftKings | Runline | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Houston Astros | +118 | +1.5 (-175) | Over 8.5 (-106) |
| Oakland A’s | -137 | -1.5 (+143) | Under 8.5 (-114) |
Odds as of April 2nd.
[promoted-sportsbook]The A’s dominated the Astros at home in 2020, winning all but one of eight games at the Coliseum before Houston eliminated Oakland in the Division Series, 3-1. Now, Bob Melvin’s club is a -137 favorite to bounce back on Friday in the A’s vs Astros odds, in a game that features a total of 8.5.
Oakland starter Jesus Luzardo went 3-2 for the A’s in 2020, finishing with a 4.12 ERA while striking out 59 batters in 59.0 innings over nine starts. The Astros took Luzardo deep twice in Game 3 of the 2020 ALDS, but the A’s picked up their only victory of the series, winning 9-7. The 23-year-old went 4.1 innings, giving up four earned runs on five hits and striking out a pair.
The Athletics were favored on the moneyline 45 total times last season. They went 30-15 in those games.
Astros’ Career Stats vs Luzardo (Regular Season)
| Player | AB | H | HR | RBI | K | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jose Altuve | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .250 |
| Michael Brantley | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .167 |
| Alex Bregman | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 |
| Kyle Tucker | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 |
| Carlos Correa | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .200 |
| Yordan Alvarez | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 |
| Yuli Gurriel | 5 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 1 | .600 |
| Myles Straw | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 |
| Martin Maldonado | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | .167 |
Michael Brantley and Alex Bregman were Houston’s offensive stars Thursday, with both going deep. Each also scored twice, with Brantley collecting three hits and Bregman a pair. We’ll see if they can keep it going Friday. Meantime, Aledmys Diaz and Jose Altuve hit those postseason dingers against Luzardo last fall.
Jose Altuve's HR off Jesus Luzardo was actually a reminder of what a strange season Altuve had.
He was just 8-for-48 (.167) vs. LHP this year, with one HR.
But in his career: .331/.388/.502 vs. LHP
Hold those trash-can jokes, please!
— Jayson Stark (@jaysonst) October 7, 2020
Altuve is a solid bet to do more damage Friday. But the clear-cut pick to enjoy his matchup against Luzardo is Yuli Gurriel. In five at-bats against him, Gurriel has gone deep twice.
Piña Power 🍍 Piña poppin' off! el_yuly10 pegó un #Jonronazo … azo … azo …azo … 🍍 #PorLaH #ForTheH #Astros 2 @ #Athletics 0 [T6-2o]:
Yuli Gurriel homers (6): line drive to LCF (solo)
Hit: 405ft, 102.5mph, 28°Rocket
Pitch: 86.5mph Changeup (LHP Jesús Luzardo, 6) pic.twitter.com/vNwxXS6DBN
— Micheal Trung Bui (@buimichealtrung) September 10, 2020
Houston’s dangerous lineup features numerous players who have enjoyed success against the A’s young southpaw. And while Oakland’s lineup may not be as imposing as its AL West rival’s, there’s several A’s players who have done well against Houston’s young start Cristian Javier.
A’s Career Stats vs Javier (Regular Season)
| Player | AB | H | HR | RBI | K | AVG. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mark Canha | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | .000 |
| Ramon Laureano | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .000 |
| Matt Olson | 4 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | .250 |
| Matt Chapman | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | .500 |
| Mitch Moreland | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Jed Lowrie | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Sean Murphy | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | .500 |
| Chad Pinder | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Elvis Andrus | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 |
The 24-year-old is coming off a 5-2 rookie campaign that saw him go 54.1 innings while picking up 54 strikeouts and finishing with a 3.48 ERA over ten starts. Javier finished third in AL Rookie of the Year balloting (Luzardo finished 8th).
Ramon Laureano and Chad Pinder both had a pair of hits in Thursday’s 8-1 defeat to Houston. The rest of the A’s lineup was a combined 2-for-22 against Greinke. Look for those paltry numbers to change Friday, as three Athletics have hit long balls against Javier in limited ABs. The Matts — Olson and Chapman — have gone yard, as has Sean Murphy. The player to watch Friday could be Chapman.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOrY_noD9DI
The two-time Platinum Glove third baseman made his return to the hot corner after he playing only 37 games in 2020 because of a right hip injury that required surgery in September. Chapman launched 36 home runs and drove in 91 runs during the 2019 campaign — but his defense is just as much of a factor as his offense. The 27-year-old could easily take away a hit or extra bases away from Houston’s right-handed-heavy lineup.
This matchup features two young pitchers that enjoyed success in 2020. But it also has a bunch of players on both teams that have had success against them. With a total of 8.5 (that started at 8 overnight Thursday and began climbing), the over looks like a solid play in this spot.
The pick: Over 8.5 (-106)
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Sports Writer
Blair Johnson is a veteran journalist and seasoned sports content creator. He has been writing and producing content as long as he can remember, with such familiar names as CNN, NFL Media and Yahoo. Blair currently lives and works in the greater Los Angeles area.
