The short-handed Toronto Blue Jays are back in a Wild Card spot, and they go for the series sweep this afternoon against the Oakland Athletics as heavy -175 road favorites in the MLB odds.
The Blue Jays’ arrow is pointing up again after three straight wins, coupled with the Texas Rangers’ freefall. Their bats came alive in the seventh inning last night, scoring six runs on the way to a 7-1 win.
Until then, Chris Bassitt had kept Toronto in the game with another gem. The Athletics recorded seven hits but couldn’t cash them in as Bassitt got through eight innings of work and landed his 14th win of the year.
Read on for our free MLB picks and predictions for Blue Jays vs Athletics on September 6.
Blue Jays vs A's odds
Blue Jays vs A's predictions
With Bo Bichette and Matt Chapman still out of the lineup, this road trip was always likely to be substance over style for the Blue Jays. It hasn’t been pretty, but Toronto has the chance to wrap up a 5-1 trip this afternoon.
There’s still no margin for error, but I see the visitors building on their explosive production late in last night’s contest. George Springer, Alejandro Kirk, and Kevin Kiermaier all had multi-hit games as the Blue Jays rebounded from a sluggish start to finish with 10 hits.
After two slow-burners in this series, the stage is set for a faster start this afternoon. The visitors have posted big totals throughout this West Coast swing, scoring 40 runs in five games and hammering the Over (4-1 in that stretch).
Hyun-Jin Ryu has been solid in his past five starts — all Toronto wins — but four of those games have featured 11 or more runs, including a 13-9 run-fest against the Colorado Rockies on Friday. That says more about the Blue Jays’ relievers, given that Ryu hasn’t given up more than three runs in any of those past five contests, but it’s a trend I’m monitoring.
Meanwhile, Oakland starter JP Sears is in the midst of a rough season, and his 4.60 ERA suggests that the visitors could get some early scoring chances. Sears kept the L.A. Angels in check in his last start, but his August ERA was still 8.25.
With the Blue Jays in playoff mode and the Athletics playing free and easy, I’m taking the Over on this slightly adjusted total.
My best bet: Over 7.5 (-135 at SIA)
Blue Jays vs A's same-game parlay
Over 7.5
Ryu to Record the Win
Springer Over 0.5 Hits
Ryu has pitched five innings in each of his past four starts (the minimum to record a win) and he’ll likely be on a similar pitch count today. Still, I like the Blue Jays to jump out to an early lead, with Ryu’s array of pitches keeping the A’s hitters off balance.
Springer has found Oakland Coliseum to his liking, with three hits and four RBIs so far in this series. I see him tacking on at least one more hit this afternoon.
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Blue Jays vs A's moneyline and Over/Under analysis
Toronto is a clear favorite to clinch the sweep this afternoon, and the pitching matchup seemingly gives the visitors an edge. The Blue Jays are 7-3 in their last 10 games — a mark that’s been good enough to inch ahead of the Rangers for the final AL Wild Card spot.
The A’s have the worst record in the majors at 42-97 and haven’t been able to capitalize on Toronto’s depleted batting lineup in this series. I don’t see that changing today, especially as Oakland has only been a winner on the F5 moneyline in 30 of its past 78 contests.
The hosts got six strong innings from Ken Waldichuk yesterday, but it’s fair to wonder what kind of outing we’ll see from Sears, who brings a 3-11 record into this matchup. I’ve already picked the Over here, largely because the Blue Jays have scored six or more runs in each of their last six games, starting with a 7-0 win over the Washington Nationals on August 30.
The main reason to consider the Under is the Athletics’ miserable numbers at the plate this season (.224 average), but they’ve been more productive in the early days of September (27 runs in five games) and have 15 hits in this series.
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Trend to know
The Blue Jays have hit the Over in nine of their past 10 games. Find more MLB betting trends for Blue Jays vs. A's
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Blue Jays vs A's game info
| Location: | Oakland Coliseum, Oakland, CA |
| Date: | Wednesday, September 6, 2023 |
| First pitch: | 3:37 p.m. ET |
| TV: | Sportsnet, NBCSCA |
Starting pitchers
Hyun-Jin Ryu (3-1, 2.48 ERA): Ryu’s comeback has steadied the back-end of the Toronto rotation, and he’s benefitted from the kind of run support that teammate Kevin Gausman can only dream about. The veteran lefty held the Rockies to two runs on four hits on Friday, with three Ks.
JP Sears (3-11, 4.60 ERA): Heading into this lefty-lefty matchup, Sears is at least an unknown for the Toronto hitters, but it remains to be seen whether his six scoreless innings against the Angels on Friday was a sign of an upswing in form. Sears had allowed 13 runs across his two prior starts.
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