Skubal’s Surprising Move That Could Upend the Athletics’ Season Revealed

Ever notice how in sports—and life for that matter—things tend to find their own balance, whether we like it or not? Yesterday, luck smiled my way with a stroke of baseball fortune, but today? I’m banking on skill as the Detroit Tigers gear up to face the Oakland Athletics at 10:05 ET. The Tigers have been on a tear this season, boasting a formidable pitching staff anchored by Tarik Skubal—his numbers could very well rewrite the record books. Meanwhile, the A’s, with their nomadic existence and rebuilding roster, face uphill odds with J.T. Ginn on the mound. Can the Tigers continue their dominance, or will the Athletics surprise us all? My money’s leaning towards the run line—because sometimes, a win is more than just luck; it’s a statement. LEARN MORE

Tigers vs. Athletics, 10:05 ET

A win is a win. I believe in balance, and I believe that things tend to even out. There are some times when they don’t, of course. I coach girls’ basketball, and the game doesn’t always get officiated balanced. The teams aren’t always balanced in playing time or skill. Still, there are times when things just luck out for you. I had that yesterday as the one bet that I shared ended up being a winner, but mostly because of luck. The White Sox scored eight runs and won the game, and thankfully, the Twins scored nothing, giving the game an under and a winning result for us. Today, I hope this is based on skill, not luck, and it doesn’t balance to bad luck, as the Tigers take on the Athletics. 

The Tigers are 24 games above .500 for the season, and they are going to roll into the playoffs. As of right now, they are destined for the #1 seed in the league, but they do have the Blue Jays following closely behind them. They are just 1.5 games up on the #1 seed, but either way, the expectation is that the team should get a bye for the first round. The Tigers offense has been one of the more surprising areas of the season, but the strength of this team is the pitching staff, led, of course, by the ultra-talented, Tarik Skubal. Skubal takes the hill today and he has the potential, this season, to lead the majors in ERA, strikeouts and WHIP. He is tied for 13th with 11 wins for the year, but his other numbers are 2.32 for ERA, 200 strikeouts, and 0.87 as a WHIP. The Tigers have won all four of his games this month, even with one of his worst starts happening. He allowed four earned runs over 4.2 innings against the Angels, which was the fifth time this year he has allowed four or more in a game. One of the other times actually happened against these Athletics, where he allowed four earned runs in six innings. 

The Athletics are 12 games under .500, and as I’ve discussed before, outside of one stretch of the season, they have been an above .500 team. This is a strange season for the team in general considering they don’t have an actual stadium or even city that they can truly call home. The roster is improving with the young talent and should be good in coming years with some of the haul that they’ve gotten from some of the trades. There is still a lot to be desired with their pitching staff, but perhaps they can get some talent signed when they move to Las Vegas. That is still a couple of years away, though. Today, they send out J.T. Ginn to the mound. For the season, Ginn is 2-5 with a 4.95 ERA and a 1.37 WHIP. After putting together a very nice July, he has struggled a bit this month, allowing 14 earned runs over 16 innings. He faced the Tigers in June, allowing two earned runs on four hits over two innings. Overall, the Tigers are hitting .385 against him in 26 at-bats.

I think the Tigers once again have a good chance to get the job done against the Athletics, but I’m not sure that I want to back a team that is -200. Instead, I think the Tigers will win this on the run line. I really don’t bet too many games at -125 for the run line, but I think the Tigers win this one by a good margin. I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Athletics go under on their team total either. 

For more sports betting information and plays, follow David on X/Twitter: @futureprez2024