Thursday Night Baseball: Los Angeles Angels Vs. Seattle Mariners

Pitching Matchup

Garrett Richards (9-5, ERA 3.35) vs. Felix Hernandez (10-5, ERA 3.02)

Garrett Richards: Garrett Richards is developing into a reliable pitcher for the Angels, who are currently in the thick of the American League Wild Card race. He has found success against the Seattle Mariners so far in 2015, posting a 1-0 record and an ERA of 1.84 over 14.2 innings pitched. 

Felix Hernandez: The King is once again having himself an impressive season, though he has struggled over his past 5 starts. After starting the season 9-2 and working his way towards another CY Young, The King cooled off as the weather warmed up, going 1-3 with an ERA of 4.50. This season Felix has faced LA three times going 2-0 with an ERA of 0.90 and 26 strikeouts over 20 innings pitched.

The Angels are holding down the Wild Card

With the bats of Mike Trout and Albert Pujols leading the way, the Angels are gearing up for a strong second half to the season. With a combined 49 home runs between the two, each is making a case to warrant some MVP votes this season. The Angels may not want to settle for just a Wild Card spot, but will be aiming for the division lead. Only a few games behind the Houston Astros for the AL West crown, the Angels' may be busy around the trade deadline this year.   

Seattle has disappointed up to this point

After a busy offseason, the Mariners’ goal was to get past the 85 wins they had last season and into the AL playoffs. As they will enter the All-Star break with a record below .500 (even if they sweep the Angels this weekend), the Mariners have been a disappointment. Nelson Cruz who hit 18 home runs between April and May, only hit one in June and zero so far in July. With Felix Hernandez recent struggles, the teams two All-Star could use a few extra days off to regroup and return to form for the second half of the season.

Best Bets

Most betting lines have this matchup fairly even, slightly favouring Seattle to win, which seems to be the best choice due to Hernanadez's career success against the Angels. With this matchup being in Seattle, a below average park for hitters, and two quality pitchers on the mounds the under is a better betting option.

Category : Betting Picks

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