Toronto @ OAKLAND
OAKLAND -101 over Toronto

BEST LINES: Pinnacle -101 Bet365 -105 SportsInteraction -105 5DIMES -102

Posted at 12:00 PM EST. 

10:05 PM EST. The Blue Jays are good. There is no question that they are a threat in the AL East and they also have to be feeling pretty damn good about where they are right now considering how bad they started. However, this is a difficult spot for them after winning yesterday to complete a 2/2 split with the Yanks over the weekend. The Jays rallied late from a 2-0 deficit yesterday to win it 3-2. It was an important win for the Jays but it was also a draining series. With the first place Yanks in town, the Jays played four games in succession to sellout crowds of 46,000+. It was a playoff like atmosphere and now they go from that to playing in Oakland. Even if the Jays don’t suffer a letdown here, they are still in tough.

The Athletics are 16-12 at home. It may also surprise you to learn that they have hit the fourth most homers in the league just behind the Astros, Rays and Nationals. That could bode well here against J.A. Happ. While Happ has induced more ground balls this year (48%) and struck out 23 batters in 20 innings, he has allowed harder contact (34%) in 2017. Happ missed almost six weeks with elbow inflammation and returned to the rotation last week with just four innings of work against Cincinnati. He allowed two jacks, three runs, walked three and struck out three and is likely to be on a strict pitch count here as well. 20 innings is not a lot to go on but Happ has been around for years. Last season he maintained a new mix (heavy fastball/slider and sprinkled in curve/change) but outside of his wacky win total, not much else changed. Age, ERA/xERA gap and just average command should temper his price but it hasn’t. He’ll very likely come back to the pack.

Sean Manaea has filthy stuff and continues to create swings and misses (15%) consistently with his change-up (19%) and slider (25%). The lefty has allowed eight earned runs in 22 home innings (3.27 ERA) and his ground ball tilt (51%) plays well at Oakland Coliseum. While fewer first-pitch strikes (58%) have contributed to more walks, his outstanding skills make him worth targeting. Toronto almost always struggles against pitchers with wicked sliders (as do most teams). Sean Manaea entered 2017 as one of the best breakout targets in the game. He started to produce at that level in May (2.63 ERA, 0.88 WHIP) and those marks weren't flukes. They were backed by all of his underlying numbers and now we get him in a favorable spot at a great price.

Open an account today at Pinnacle Sports and take advantage of their -104 style pricing on sides and totals, which is 60% better than other sportsbooks.



Our Pick

OAKLAND -102 (Risking 2.04 units - To Win: 2.02)

Baltimore -1½ +124 over L.A. Angels
San Francisco +100 over San Diego
Toronto +120 over Tampa Bay
Washington +135 over Cincinnati
San Diego under 83½ -105
Boston under 79½ -110