Unbelievable Showdown: Will the Angels Shock the Athletics This Friday Night?

Isn’t it a curious thing how the AL West keeps flipping the script every season? While the Astros, Mariners, and Rangers duke it out for top billing, the Angels and Athletics find themselves on the outside looking in—yet both have managed to inch forward this year despite the odds. The Angels, barely under .500 but surprisingly competitive, have been crafting some unexpected victories—sweeping the Dodgers twice suggests they’ve got more gas in the tank than we thought. Meanwhile, the Athletics, plagued by an inexplicable 20-loss skid in 21 games, still have that spark, especially on offense, nudging them toward a potentially brighter future. Tonight’s matchup sets a stage where pitching duels and offensive quirks will decide which underdogs keep clawing. So, can Kikuchi’s solid but shaky road form outshine Perkins’ unpredictable start? Or will the game paint a typical underdog tale? Let’s dive into this dance of baseball fate. LEARN MORE

Angels vs. Athletics, 10:05 ET

The AL West has been one of the more intriguing divisions in baseball this season. I’ve enjoyed the fact that virtually all five of the teams have been strong at one point or another. The battle between the Astros, Mariners, and Rangers for the top spot will probably last the remainder of the season. I’m guessing the two teams in this one are both going to be out of the division race and probably out of the Wild Card race. Either way, this has been a step forward season for both the Angels and Athletics, and they match up tonight.Â

The Angels are under .500, which is not much of a surprise considering that’s typically where they have been at this point in most past seasons. As I mentioned, though, this team has been better this year than in the past. The fact that they are even still competitive is a positive sign for their club. They have struggled on the road this season, but even that shows them being six games under .500. As a club, they are hitting .233 for the year, and are throwing to a 4.63 ERA – both numbers are unimpressive, but they are finding ways to win games. They have even won four of their past five and swept the Dodgers for the second time this season. Tonight, they look to extend this success against the Athletics as they send out Yusei Kikuchi who has a 6-7 record, 3.37 ERA, and a 1.42 WHIP. The WHIP is concerning, but the rest of his numbers are very solid. He has been worse on the road than he has at home this year, posting a 4.50 ERA for the year. He did have one start for the year against the Athletics. It was probably his best game of the season, but it was a home game. He went 7.1 innings and allowed just one hit and one walk while striking out five and allowing no runs.Â

The Athletics could’ve had a significantly better year if they didn’t have one of the worst slumps of the season. Basically, they were the Colorado Rockies for a short stretch of the year. In that stretch, they lost 20 of 21 games. They are 15 games under .500 for the season, so if you remove that one stretch of their year, and you actually have a winning club. There really wasn’t a great indicator of why the Atheltics sucked so badly in that stretch. It could’ve been bad pitching considering they have a 4.90 ERA for the season. The team is bolstered, certainly, by their offense. They are hitting .253 as a team, and if they can get some arms, this should be a good team in the next few years. Tonight, they send out Jack Perkins to the mound. I’m not 100% sure how they will use him – as an opener or as a true starter. He was able to get through six innings in his last outing, but he went no more than 3.1 in any other outing this season. Overall, he has a 4.08 ERA and a 1.05 WHIP. Perkins has never faced the Angels.Â

This should be a fun game between the two teams. Kikuchi has not been as reliable on the road, but he hasn’t been terrible either. On the other side of the diamond, the Athletics are decent, but not great. I think the game probably results in the over, but I’m not sure that it makes a ton of sense to take the over 9.5. I think it probably makes more sense to play the Angels on the moneyline. I do think they are the hotter team, and should be able to overcome any issues Kikuchi might have tonight.Â

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