Oakland Athletics @ Pittsburgh Pirates – Wednesday July 10, 2013
If there is one thing that baseball managers like, it is a good test of their team’s abilities in a perfectly-timed series. When the Oakland Athletics cross the country to visit the Pittsburgh Pirates, the on line sports betting world will keep a close eye on each game. If the Pittsburgh Pirates want to show that they are for real and belong in the NL Central pennant race, then this would be the game to show it. The Pirates have one of their best pitchers going up against one of Oakland’s best. This is the time for Pittsburgh to show that they can stay relevant or if the post All-Star game collapse is imminent.
The Oakland Athletics have battled their way to the top of the AL West standings and they are currently involved in a tug-of-war with the Texas Rangers. Last season, the sports betting services watched as the Rangers handed the AL West pennant to the Athletics on the last day of the season. While the Athletics were happy to win the pennant, they do not want to leave anything to chance this season. Oakland wants to win that pennant outright and it will have to beat teams like the Pittsburgh Pirates to show that the Athletics belong in the AL West pennant hunt.
Pittsburgh Pirates
Francisco Liriano has proven to be everything that the Pirates had hoped he would be when they picked him up from the White Sox. He was ready for the start of this season and his 8-3 record with 2.20 ERA are proof of that. The thing that amazes the top sports betting sites is that Liriano has only started 11 games this season. That means that he has a decision in every game he has started. When a team has a pitcher that is reliable in that way, then it makes everyone else’s job easier.
Oakland Athletics
The Athletics will send Tommy Milone to the mound and Milone has been pitching well as of late. He has a 5-2 record in his last 10 starts, but his 4.43 ERA in that stretch indicates that he is relying a little too much on the Athletics hitters to help him win games. The other problem the sports online betting experts see is that Milone is incredibly inconsistent when it comes to how far he can go in a game. His innings in games ranges from four to eight, with every other number in between.
The Bottom Line
Tommy Milone is having a good season, but the Pirates are the kind of hitting team that can get to Milone. Francisco Liriano has been a model of consistency for the Pirates all season long and he has shown that he is able to shut down the opposition when needed. This will be a good game, but it will be an even better win for Pittsburgh.
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Pick: Pittsburgh Pirates
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