Athletics vs. Orioles MLB Odds & Picks: Back Visiting Oakland To Grab 14th Consecutive Win (Sunday, April 25)

The Oakland Athletics put their 13-game winning streak in the hands of pitcher Jesús Luzardo on Sunday afternoon against the Baltimore Orioles.

Baltimore will send its best arm to the mound in John Means, who’s off to an impressive start. However, he faces an Oakland lineup that’s thriving as of late. The visitor’s biggest strength is in its pitching, though. Luzardo isn’t throwing like an ace, but has electric stuff that could easily overwhelm Baltimore’s lineup.

Let’s dig into the matchup and see what might be on deck.

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Oakland Athletics

Before his 2019 debut, Luzardo was a premier pitching prospect for the club. The southpaw only made six appearances that year before throwing three scoreless in the American League Wild Card game. Last season, he was solid with a 4.12 ERA and 4.19 FIP in 12 appearances, including nine starts.

Through four outings this season, Luzardo is allowing more hits and walks per nine innings than last season, while striking out 10.3 per nine innings. He has a 5.89 ERA through 18 1/3 innings, although his 4.24 FIP indicates that better results are around the corner.

After a hard-fought, 3-1 win in Friday’s series opener, Oakland’s bats came alive with seven runs in the first four innings in Game 2 of the set.

Matt Olson continued his stellar start to the season by driving in runs in both the first and second innings Saturday, while Mark Canha and Jed Lowrie remained hot at the top of the order. Lowrie’s 2021 comeback is an incredible story, plus he has 17 RBIs after a three-run home run in Saturday’s victory.

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Baltimore Orioles

While Oakland’s bats are red-hot and among the best in baseball, Baltimore’s hitters have been terrible.

Name an offensive category — literally any — and it’s likely the Orioles rank in the bottom five in entire league in it. Center fielder Cedric Mullins is the only Orioles’ regular performing at an above-average level this season.

So what does Baltimore have going for it? One thing: this game’s starting pitcher.

Means was an All-Star in 2019, because the Orioles had to have one, and he struggled with a 4.53 ERA and 5.60 FIP last year. Through four starts in 2021, Means has been better than ever, though.

The lefty boasts a 1.52 ERA in his first 23 2/3 innings. His 3.01 FIP indicates he hasn’t exactly been an ace, but he has still been very good. Those starts have come against the Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, Seattle Mariners and Texas Rangers. His biggest test will be in this game.

Athletics-Orioles Pick

While Means has the better numbers so far this season, the Athletics lineup is sizzling right now. Also, Luzardo has been solid and steady through four starts this season. The chances of him getting lit up by Baltimore is somewhere between slim and none.

One team has won 13 consecutive games. The other is the Baltimore Orioles. That said, back Oakland to continue its stellar winning streak.

Pick: Athletics -136

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