StatFox.com - Sports Handicapping Community

The Leader In Sports Handicapping

A's host Dodgers on Wednesday
By: Staff Writer - StatFox
Published: 8/8/2018  at  9:44:00 AM
  Print This Article    

Right-hander Mike Fiers will make his Oakland Athletics debut Wednesday night and go head-to-head with Los Angeles Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw when the clubs complete a two-game interleague series.

The Dodgers won the series opener 4-2 on Tuesday, ending Oakland's six-game winning streak and putting the National League squad a win away from claiming the season series after the teams had split a pair in Los Angeles in April.

The Dodgers' win in Oakland on Tuesday was their first since 2001, snapping an eight-game losing streak.

Fiers (7-6, 3.48 with Detroit) will be attempting to get A's a seventh win in their eight-game homestand when he takes the mound in Oakland for just the seventh time in his career.

He was acquired in a waiver deal from the Tigers on Monday in exchange for two players to be named later.

Even though Fiers has gone just 1-2 with a 4.91 ERA in his six Oakland appearances, five as a starter, A's catcher Jonathan Lucroy noted Tuesday he expects his former teammate in Milwaukee to thrive in his spacious new home.

"He's going to go out and give our team a chance to win every night," said Lucroy, who was behind the plate for 45 of Fiers' previous outings. "He's going to match up well with this ballpark. He's a flyball pitcher. It's a good pick-up. He'll do a good job here."

Fiers has pitched well against the Dodgers in his career, going 4-1 with a 2.05 ERA in five games, including four starts. He hasn't faced Los Angeles since 2015.

The 33-year-old was pulled from his final Tigers start after two innings last Wednesday after getting hit on the shin with a line drive. He walked away with just a bruise.

Kershaw (5-5, 2.55), meanwhile, will be seeking to add Oakland to his list of 23 major league teams he's beaten in his career.

He's pitched well enough to win all three previous duels with the A's but had to settle for three no-decisions despite a 0.87 ERA, having allowed just two runs and 12 hits in 20 2/3 innings with 22 strikeouts.

He's pitched twice previously in Oakland, allowing two runs and eight hits in 15 innings with 14 strikeouts.

The only teams the seven-time All-Star have never beaten are Oakland, Texas, Minnesota, Boston, the New York Yankees, Baltimore and his career-long employer, the Dodgers.

Kershaw will take the mound riding a two-game winning streak during which he's limited Atlanta and Milwaukee to three runs in 13 2/3 innings, striking out 15.

He'll have to deal with one of the hottest hitters in all of baseball in Oakland's Khris Davis, who belted his 32nd home run, a two-run shot, off Dodgers starter Rich Hill in Tuesday's loss.

Davis has 10 homers and 22 RBIs in his last 14 games.

He hasn't had much luck with Kershaw in his career, going 1-for-11 with a single and three strikeouts.


FoxSheets.com
The FoxSheets - the most advanced sports handicapping information available on the internet.
Sign up for professional sports betting information including fantastic trends, and Free FoxSheets.
E-mail: