Game: Los Angeles Angels at Baltimore Orioles
Time: 7:05 p.m. ET
Starting Pitchers: Dylan Bundy vs. Spenser Watkins
Odds: Angels -125, Orioles +130
The Angels had a much-needed day off yesterday. They had to recover from being swept by the Cleveland Indians over the weekend. LA managed to score just two runs in three games. A mid-week series against Baltimore is just what the Angels need. The Orioles have been consistent. Unfortunately, that consistency has translated into 18 straight losses. Only one of those losses was by a single run.
While the Orioles aren’t the worst scoring team in the majors, they do have the worst ERA. Baltimore pitchers have combined to post a 5.80 ERA this season. For comparison’s sake, Arizona is 29th at 5.25. Right-hander Spenser Watkins will start for the Orioles tonight. Watkins is just 2-5 on the season and while he pitched well in his two wins, the rest of his resume is not great. In his last five starts, Watkins has given up at least four earned runs in all of them. In those five starts, he lasted more than four innings just once.
Now, the Angels offense isn’t spectacular, but when Shohei Ohtani is on LA can score some runs. Before getting swept by the Indians, the Angels swept the Tigers. Ohtani went 4-for-10 with a home run in that series as LA put up a total of 24 runs in three games. The Angels have the capability of getting baserunners and scoring runs. They are a top 10 team in batting average (.248, 8th) and rank 14th in runs per game and OPS. Hitting Watkins and the Orioles bullpen shouldn’t be a problem.
What could be a problem for LA is starting pitcher Dylan Bundy. Bundy was once a top prospect in the Orioles organization. He has never really turned into the kind of pitcher either organization had hoped. This season, Bundy is 2-9 with a career-high ERA of 6.04. He hasn’t lasted more than 4.2 innings in either of his last two starts. However, in his last start, Bundy held Detroit to two earned runs in 4.2 innings and LA went on to win 8-2.
Totals bettors looking at tonight’s game should be wary. Despite being as bad as they are, the Orioles have seen quite a few high totals recently. In their last ten games, five have had a double-digit total. Only one of those five games went Over. Tonight, the total is listed at 10.5.
Keep in mind that the Under has hit in 14 of the Angels last 20 games on the road. For the season, the Under is 35-29 in Angels away games. The Under has also cashed in 13 of the last 17 Orioles-Angels games played in Baltimore. It’s a high total tonight because of the starting pitchers and the fact that Baltimore’s bullpen ERA is 29th in the majors (5.34). Even so, neither of these lineups will scare many pitchers…except for Ohtani. Remember, the Angels only scored two runs in their last series. Baltimore scored just five.