Posted at 11:45 AM EST. Odds subject to change.

Pinnacle  +174 BET365 +167 Sportsinteraction +169 888Sport +110

Oakland +174 over Miami

6:40 PM EST. Rarely are the A’s playable but at this price against a Miami team capable of losing often, the risk is worth the reward. The setup here is that both starters have nasty stuff but both are wild. Edward Cabrera (RHP - MIA) has walked 35 batters in 52 frames while Shintaro Fujinami (RHP - OAK) has walked 24 batters in 31 innings.

Signed in January 2023 from Japan to a one-year, $3.25M contract, Fujinami won a job in the Athletics' rotation out of spring. In a somewhat unusual arrangement due to the differences in MLB and Japan professional leagues, Fujinami is expected to only start once a week (as opposed to every five days). He stands 6’6” and uses every inch of his frame to provide a unique angle and velocity. His fastball sits in the mid-to-high 90s while using a variety of other offspeed pitches and breaking balls. Fujinami’s arsenal also includes a cutter, slider, splitter, and curveball. When he’s on, he can be downright filthy, particularly with the fastball and splitter. His main issues in Japan revolved around his lack of control and command. The Athletics believe he can iron out his command problems and become a solid contributor to the rotation. Dude can strike guys out like crazy, as evidenced by his K%. Cabrera, too, can strike guys out like crazy (66 K’s in 52 innings).

Thus, what we have here are two starters with control issues. One starter is a -190 favorite, which takes us back to what we’re always looking for ---value. It is also worth noting that Oakland ranks 12th in MLB in walks while Miami ranks near the bottom of the league at 28th. Clearly, the A’s are more disciplined at the plate. It’s not easy to pull the trigger on the A’s but at this price with this setup, they are worth a bet.

Sherwood

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