Angels vs Giants Odds, Lines, and Spread – Aug 20

• The Los Angeles Angels visit the San Francisco Giants on Thursday (Aug. 20, 9:45 pm EST) 
• Jose Suarez (0-0, 0.00 ERA) will make his season debut for Los Angeles, while San Francisco will give the ball to Kevin Gausman (0-1, 4.21 ERA)
• Read below for a preview and betting prediction for the game

A couple California clubs meet for the fourth consecutive day on Thursday (Aug. 20, 9:45 pm EST) as the Los Angeles Angels visit the San Francisco Giants.

After dropping the first game 7-6, San Fran has rebounded with back-to-back convincing victories. On Tuesday, they hammered LA 8-2 and they followed that up on Wednesday with a 7-2 win.

Angels vs Giants Odds

Odds taken Aug. 20th

Not surprisingly, San Francisco opened as the favorite in the Angels vs Giants odds, in a game that features a total of 9. The over/under looks especially low given how frequently both teams’ games have been flying over the total, and the projected pitching matchup.

Gausman Hasn’t Had the Goods in 2020

The over is 6-0-1 in LA’s past seven games, and the Angels’ bats should have no problem generating offense against San Fran starter Kevin Gausman. The 29-year-old is winless in five outing this season, and has allowed three or more runs in all but one appearance. He’s never posted a winning record in his career, and he’s surrendering home runs at a higher rate than any of his previous seven seasons.

Tired: Three true outcomes
Wired: One true outcome (An Oly homer)#RootedInOakland pic.twitter.com/6AHlcUNlJl

— Oakland A's (@Athletics) August 16, 2020

That spells trouble against this powerful Los Angeles lineup, who’s already smacked 41 homers in 25 games in 2020. The Angels have gone deep three times in this series, and reigning MVP Mike Trout has absolutely rocked Gausman throughout his career.

I don't think Mike Trout taking Gausman deep surprised anyone https://t.co/KgnPS3CmeM

— We have baseball (@MASNOriolez) August 20, 2017

Trout is batting .412 in 17 plate appearances versus Gausman, with three home runs.

Angels Career Stats vs Gausman

Suarez Gets a Shot

A big reason why so many of LA’s games have gone over the total has been due to lousy pitching. Angels starters have a 5.27 ERA this season, nearly a full run higher than the league average. All three of LA’s starters have failed to make it out of the 5th inning in this series, surrendering 12 runs in just over 12 innings of work.

Jose Suarez Hours 😁 pic.twitter.com/AjWpy6lnFE

— 𝔻𝕖𝕥𝕞𝕖𝕣𝕤𝕊ℤℕ 💯 (@DetmersSZN) August 15, 2020

That’s prompted the team to make a change in the rotation, calling on Jose Suarez to replace Julio Tehran for Thursday’s finale. The problem is, Suarez hasn’t pitched in 2020 and was abysmal in 2019. The 22-year-old was 2-7 in 15 starts, with a 7.11 ERA and 1.64 WHIP. His fastball tops out in the low 90’s and opposing batters made hard contact in 47.7% of their at-bats versus him last season.

Giants Career Stats vs Suarez

The Giants offense meanwhile, has been rolling lately, averaging 6.2 runs in their last six outing, smacking 11 home runs along the way. No wonder, the over is 8-1-1 in their last 10 contests.

Expect A Lot of Scoring

This total is flat out too low. San Fran is trotting out a struggling starter, while LA is giving the ball to a guy who hasn’t shown he’s capable of pitching at the big league level. Both teams boast strong offenses, with plenty of power up and down the linup.

Tommy La Stella walk-off home run. You love to see it. 🙌🏼 pic.twitter.com/Vafgpz2kWb

— Cubs Zone ™️ (@CubsZone) August 18, 2020

Each of the first three games of this series have either gone over or landed right on the number and there’s no reason to believe a lot of runs won’t be scored on Thursday.

Pick: Over 9.0 (-114)