Oakland Athletics (10-40) vs. Seattle Mariners (24-24)
The 2023 Major League Baseball season continues Thursday, May 25, with the Oakland Athletics facing off against the Seattle Mariners in the AL West showdown at T-Mobile Park in Seattle, Washington, and the first pitch is set for 9:40 PM ET.
Oakland and Seattle close down a four-game set at T-Mobile Park. The Mariners have won the first two contests, 11-2 and 3-2, while Wednesday’s game has been excluded from the analysis. Seattle opens as a firm -220 moneyline fave with a total of 8.0 runs, so let’s take a closer look.
The Athletics continue their horrible 2023 campaign
The Oakland Athletics fell to 10-40 on the season following Tuesday’s 3-2 defeat in Seattle, extending their losing streak to six games. The A’s have gone 2-14 over their previous 16 games overall, scoring three or fewer runs 13 times in that stretch.
Oakland is tallying just 3.60 runs per game in 2023 (28th in the majors). The Athletics rank 18th in home runs (53) and 12th in walks (165), but over the last couple of weeks, they are slashing a miserable .202/.274/.332 with 13 home runs and 16 extra-base hits across 431 at-bats.
Pitch it, kick it, flip it, bop it! pic.twitter.com/sujbIBY9ey
— Oakland A's (@Athletics) May 24, 2023
JP Sears will toe the rubber Thursday in Seattle. The 27-year-old left-hander is 0-3 with a 4.99 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, and 51/10 K/BB ratio in nine starts (48.2 innings pitched) in 2023. He’s pitched well over his previous two outings, tossing 5.1 innings of a three-run ball (two earned) in a no-decision against the Texas Rangers and six frames of a two-run ball in a no-decision versus the Houston Astros.
Sears meets the Mariners for the second time this season. Back on May 3, JP blanked Seattle over six innings, allowing four hits and a pair of walks while punching out seven. Still, the A’s eventually lost 7-2. Sears is 2-0 with a microscopic 0.41 ERA and 0.95 WHIP in three career starts and one relief appearance against the Mariners.
The Mariners are back to .500
The Seattle Mariners improved to 24-24 on the season following Tuesday’s narrow victory to the Athletics. It was their third win in four games, as the M’s erased a two-run deficit with a couple of round-trippers in the fifth inning. JP Crawford launched a two-run homer, and Ty France followed with a solo dinger.
The Mariners are scoring 4.50 runs per game (14th in the MLB) on an underwhelming .228/.308/.380 slash line (.247/.320/.408 league average). Over the last two weeks, the M’s are slashing .244/.324/.395 with 14 home runs and 18 extra-base hits through 410 at-bats.
.@jp_crawford goes BOOM 💪 pic.twitter.com/W7Mg3sCN3w
— Seattle Mariners (@Mariners) May 24, 2023
Logan Gilbert will take the mound Thursday, and the 26-year-old right-hander is 2-2 with a 3.81 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, and 63/10 K/BB ratio in nine starts (52.0 IP) this season. He’s done a good job over his previous four outings in May, posting a 1-1 record to go with a sturdy 3.33 ERA, 2.05 FIP, and .496 opposing OPS across 24.1 innings of work.
Gilbert threw six innings of a two-run ball in Seattle’s 7-2 victory at Oakland Coliseum on May 3. He gave up three hits and a couple of free passes while striking out six. Logan is 1-0 with a 3.53 ERA and 1.06 WHIP in eight career starts against the Athletics.
Best Bets for this Game
Full-Game Side Bet
Insiders Status:
After hitting the winner in Monday’s opener, I got burned on Tuesday, as the Mariners failed to beat the runline. This time around, I lean the under on the totals as my best Athletics vs. Mariners betting pick. When it comes to the side bet, I would take the Mariners -1.5, relying on Seattle’s bullpen to make a difference down the stretch.Â
JP Sears and Logan Gilbert should fare well in this game. I’m expecting Gilbert to dominate the A’s, who have recorded an abysmal 48 wRC+ against the right-handed pitchers in the last ten days. The Mariners’ bullpen has registered a 3.89 ERA and 2.70 FIP in the last two weeks and 34.2 innings of work, whereas the Athletics’ bullpen has posted a bloated 5.85 ERA and 4.98 FIP through 47.2 frames of work in that span. Â
Full-Game Total Pick
Insiders Status:
The current Athletics are 17-for-72 with three doubles and three home runs against Logan Gilbert. On the other side, the current Mariners are just 7-for-44 with no extra-base hits or homers against JP Sears. As I’ve mentioned, both Sears and Gilbert have pitched well of late, so I’m not expecting to see a lot of runs in this clash.Â
It’s hard to trust Oakland’s bullpen, so taking the F5 Under is another interesting wager. The opening game of this series was a proper high-scoring affair thanks to the Mariners, who amassed 13 hits and five walks, whereas Game 2 saw just five runs on the scoreboard, as Oakland and Seattle notched up five hits apiece. The total had gone under in five of Oakland’s last six games overall and five of Seattle’s last five home contests prior to Game 3 of this series.Â