And it may blow up in my face, but I have no choice. Yes, the Indians are 8-1 in their last 9 games are are averaging almost 7 runs per game in that stretch. But tonight I will take the A's at plus money. Last year Masterson was terrorized by the A's, giving up 19 earned runs in 14 innings, including 6 HRs over the course of three games. Well, the A's are just as dangerous this year. They are in the top five teams in HRs, OBP, AVG, SBs, etc, in ROAD games.
Something tells me that the A's are ready to break out tonight after getting shut down in the first two games of this series. Maybe it's the fact that Moss, Cespedes, and Jaso are all batting better than .400 against Masterson. Or maybe it's because the A's starter tonight, AJ Griffin, is 5 for 6 in quality starts this year. He just got done shutting down the Yankees in Yankee Stadium, and earlier this year he shut down the Angels on the road, back when everyone thought that the Angels would be unbeatable. He wasn't scared then, he wasn't scared on Friday against the Yanks, and he won't be scared tonight.
Masterson is not an ACE. Look at these two pitchers side by side in 2012. Masterson: 11-15, 4.93 ERA. Griffin: 7-1, 3.06 ERA (2.90 on the road).
Money Stat: The Indians have not won the third game in ANY series at home this year (0-3).
Money Stat #2: The A's are averaging 5.3 runs per game in Griffin's road starts. The Tribe are averaging 3.6 runs per game in Masterson's home starts.
Call me crazy, but I just think the A's are a good team and they are due for a win tonight after owning the Indians the last two years. After being down 0-2 in this series, give me the hungrier team. The A's.
OAKLAND
$381 to win $400
Something tells me that the A's are ready to break out tonight after getting shut down in the first two games of this series. Maybe it's the fact that Moss, Cespedes, and Jaso are all batting better than .400 against Masterson. Or maybe it's because the A's starter tonight, AJ Griffin, is 5 for 6 in quality starts this year. He just got done shutting down the Yankees in Yankee Stadium, and earlier this year he shut down the Angels on the road, back when everyone thought that the Angels would be unbeatable. He wasn't scared then, he wasn't scared on Friday against the Yanks, and he won't be scared tonight.
Masterson is not an ACE. Look at these two pitchers side by side in 2012. Masterson: 11-15, 4.93 ERA. Griffin: 7-1, 3.06 ERA (2.90 on the road).
Money Stat: The Indians have not won the third game in ANY series at home this year (0-3).
Money Stat #2: The A's are averaging 5.3 runs per game in Griffin's road starts. The Tribe are averaging 3.6 runs per game in Masterson's home starts.
Call me crazy, but I just think the A's are a good team and they are due for a win tonight after owning the Indians the last two years. After being down 0-2 in this series, give me the hungrier team. The A's.
OAKLAND
$381 to win $400
