A’s, Halos Begin Weekend Series

C.J. Wilson will look to guide the Angels to victory in the first of four against the A’s.

The Los Angeles Angels welcome the Oakland Athletics to Anaheim, Calif., Thursday in the first of a four-game series between the division rivals.

First pitch at Angels Stadium of Anaheim is scheduled for 10:05 p.m. ET.

The Angels and Athletics locked horns at O.co Coliseum just last weekend, with the home club taking two of three.

A series win this weekend would see Oakland (78-54, 36-29 road) climb back to the top of the AL West division standings, a position the club occupied for much of the season before being usurped by the Angels two weeks ago.

Manager Bob Melvin will like his team’s chances heading into this one. The A’s are 8-4 against the Angels this season, and with Los Angeles starter Garrett Richards out of the picture for the rest of the year, the club could get a pass in one of the later games this weekend.

Los Angeles (79-53, 43-24 home) isn’t ready to roll over for their division opponents just yet though.

Mike Scioscia has seen his side compile a 22-16 record since the All-Star break, enough to climb past the A’s into top place in the majors. He’s also seen his side win 43 games at home, tied for first place with Oakland and the Washington Nationals.

The Angels are 3-3 against the Athletics this season when playing in Anaheim. They’ll look to move above .500 in the home portion of the head-to-head series when the two sides take to the field on Thursday.

Pitching matchup

Los Angeles will send C.J. Wilson (10-8, 4.45 ERA) to the mound in the series opener.

Wilson has had something of a Jekyll and Hyde season, performing well and poorly in roughly equal measure. In his last three starts, the 33-year-old left-hander has allowed just four runs and posted a 1.96 ERA. However, yielding just five hits and one run wasn’t enough to pick up a victory against the A’s last Saturday.

•  Wilson is 11-7 with a 3.24 ERA in 3.24 47 career games (18 starts) vs. Oakland
• Wilson is 20-15 with a 3.33 ERA in 57 career games (46 starts) at Angels Stadium of Anaheim
• Wilson is 0-0 with a 1.42 ERA in 1 game (1 start) vs. Oakland this season
• Wilson is 7-2 with a 4.11 ERA in 12 games (12 starts) at Angels Stadium of Anaheim this season

Oakland will counter with Sonny Gray (13-7, 3.00 ERA).

Gray got off to a fast start this season, posting a 12-3 record to begin the year. Things haven’t gone quite so well of late. The 24-year-old right-hander has gone just 1-4 with a 4.50 ERA in his last five starts. That one win though came in his last start, a game which saw the A’s defeat the Angels 5-3. He’ll be hoping for more of the same on Thursday.

• Gray is 2-0 with a 2.74 ERA in 4 career games (3 starts) vs. Los Angeles
• Gray is 0-0 with a 0.00 ERA in 1 career game (0 starts) at Angels Stadium of Anaheim
• Gray is 2-0 with a 3.60 ERA in 2 games (2 starts) vs. Los Angeles this season
• Gray has yet to play at Angels Stadium of Anaheim this season

Injury report

Oakland catcher John Jaso is currently on the 7-day concussion DL. Meanwhile, SS Jed Lowrie and 2B Nick Punto are both named on the 15-day DL. Both are reportedly close to returning to action.

Angels’ OF Grant Green is on the 15-day DL, alongside P Joe Thatcher.

Still on the DL, Jed Lowrie will miss Thursday’s game but is expected to return soon.

Betting report

Oakland Athletics vs. Los Angeles Angels odds for 08/28/2014

Oakland (-116) opened as the favorite over Los Angeles (+106) on the moneyline, but bettors would do well to shop around the sportsbooks.

At the time of writing, the A’s advantage on the moneyline had slipped, and BetOnline actually had the Angels (-110) a narrow favorite over Oakland (+100).

After taking two of three from the Angels in Oakland last weekend, the Athletics own an 8-4 advantage in the season head-to-head. This stretch includes a run of six wins in nine games.

Some other trends to consider:

• Oakland is 50-35 in night games
• Los Angeles is 61-41 in night games
• Oakland is 31-22 vs. AL West opponents
• Los Angeles is 29-22 vs. AL West opponents
• Oakland is 22-16 vs. left-handed pitching
• Los Angeles is 57-36 vs. right-handed pitching
• Oakland is 12-13 since August 1
• Los Angeles is 15-10 since August 1
• Oakland is 19-18 since the All-Star break
• Los Angeles is 18-10 since the All-Star break

The total opened at 7 and quickly jumped up to 7 1/2.

The total has gone under in 10 of the Halos’ last 15 home games. It’s also gone under in eight of the club’s last 12 home games against the Athletics.

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The Angels and Athletics continue their intra-divisional series this weekend. Starts times are as follows: Friday, 10:05 p.m. ET; Saturday, 9:05 p.m. ET; Sunday, 3:35 p.m. ET.

Following this weekend’s series, the two sides will contest just three more games this season, a series that takes place September 22-24.

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