Oakland Athletics vs. Baltimore Orioles Odds & Pick: May 25th 2010

Oakland Athletics vs. Baltimore Orioles
Free Pick: Oakland Athletics -105 odds
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Oakland brings a 3-game winning streak into this game with Baltimore. The Orioles return home after losing four of their last five games on the road. Dallas Braden goes for Oakland and he’s 4-4 with a 3.45 ERA this season. The left hander has been solid giving up just six runs over his last 23 innings pitched. Despite the fact that he’s been pitching well, Braden hasn’t received that much run support. The lefty is 4-1 with a 1.69 ERA in five career starts against the Orioles. Braden has already defeated Baltimore at home giving up just two runs and three hits in seven innings of work. Nick Markakis (1-14), Adam Jones (0-11), Luke Scott (1-8), Miguel Tejada (1-5), Matt Wieters (1-5), Corey Patterson (1-4), and Cesar Izturis (0-2) all struggle against the lefty. As a team, Baltimore is 4-10 against lefties while hitting only .245 against them and scoring just 3.2 runs per game.

Baltimore’s Jeremy Guthrie sports a 4.58 ERA in three starts at home where he’s 1-2. The right hander has struggled big time with the Athletics in his career. Guthrie is 1-3 with a 5.15 ERA in six starts against the A’s. He got a no-decision against Oakland this season after giving up two runs and six hits in 6.7 innings pitched. He gave up 11 runs in 5.4 innings of work against Oakland last season. Coco Crisp (7-20), Mark Ellis (4-11), Gabe Gross (3-10), Kurt Suzuki (5-10), Jack Cust (3-9), Rajai Davis (3-8), Ryan Sweeney (3-5), and Adam Rosales (1-3) all hit Guthrie well. Guthrie is backed by a Baltimore bullpen that has a 4.70 ERA and four blown saves at home this season. The A’s are hitting .282 as a team over their last seven games, and their hot hitting should continue tonight against Guthrie. Oakland is laying a short price with the much better pitcher on the mound so we’ll recommend a play on the A’s in this spot tonight.