Las Vegas A's

Can the A’s keep pace with the Phillies bats?

by
Tony Reyes
July 12, 2024

What: MLB Regular Season Game
When: Friday, July 12
Who: Philadelphia Phillies vs. Oakland Athletics
Time: 6:40 p.m. ET
Where: Oakland Coliseum (Oakland, CA)

On Friday evening, the Oakland Athletics will kick off a 3-game series with the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park.

The Phillies had a great first half of the season and are expected to become even stronger after the All-Star Break as they welcome back some injured players.

Philadelphia Phillies

The Phillies rank sixth in the majors in runs scored, third in batting average and on-base percentage, and fifth in slugging.

Alec Bohm has been a key contributor, hitting .292 with a .343 on-base percentage, 11 home runs, 70 RBIs, and 40 runs scored.

Bryce Harper is also having an excellent season, batting .299 with a .394 on-base percentage, 20 home runs, 58 RBIs, and 52 runs scored.

Harp snagged that baseball@STIHLUSA x #RingTheBell pic.twitter.com/pbLBPP5N7I

— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) July 12, 2024

Kyle Schwarber completes the trio of top performers, hitting .250 with a .372 on-base percentage, 18 home runs, 52 RBIs, and 62 runs scored.

Trea Turner has been on fire recently, hitting .375 over the past week with a .400 on-base percentage, three home runs, 10 RBIs, and five runs scored.

Kyle Schwarber has returned from the IL and made an immediate impact, hitting .250 in his two games with a home run, three RBIs, and two runs scored.

Brandon Marsh is also playing well, hitting .294 over the past week with a home run, two RBIs, two stolen bases, and four runs scored.

The Phillies have been hitting .266 over the past week, scoring seven home runs and 25 runs.

Oakland Athletics

The Athletics rank 27th in the majors for runs scored, 28th in batting average, 27th in on-base percentage, and 22nd in slugging percentage.

Leading their offense is Brent Rooker, who is hitting .282 with a .362 on-base percentage.

He has hit 18 home runs, driven in 55 runs, and scored 40 times this season. Shea Langeliers also contributes despite a lower batting average of .210.

He has hit 17 home runs, collected 48 RBIs, and scored 32 times. JJ Bleday rounds out the team’s top performers, hitting .230 with 11 home runs, 32 RBIs, and 37 runs scored this year.

Rooker has been particularly impressive over the past week, hitting .474 with a .577 on-base percentage. He has hit one home run, driven in six runs, and scored nine times in the last week alone.

First of three in Philly. pic.twitter.com/rV7UdVw3MO

— Oakland A's (@Athletics) July 12, 2024

Langeliers is also having a great week, batting .286 with two home runs and seven RBIs, scoring four runs.

Miguel Andujar is another player with a hot bat, hitting .308 with a home run, five RBIs, and six runs scored in the past six games.

The Athletics as a team are hitting well lately, posting a .272 average with ten home runs and 43 runs scored over the past week.

While none of the Athletics have faced Ranger Suarez before, they have shown significant success against left-handed pitching.

Brent Rooker, for instance, is hitting .262 against lefties this year, with seven home runs and 16 RBIs.

Additionally, Miguel Andujar boasts a .556 average against left-handers, with one home run and nine RBIs.

Phillies-A’s Best Bet

The outlook for Friday night’s game is simple. Don’t overthink it – the Phillies are the top team in the sport.

They boast one of the best offenses, hitting .260 overall and .266 at home. Additionally, they have a .264 batting average against left-handed pitchers.

Against the Athletics, who are starting Hogan Harris, they are expected to do significant damage. Harris holds a 5.40 ERA against the National League.

On the other hand, the Phillies’ Ranger Suarez has a remarkable 1.83 ERA, and Philadelphia has a 14-4 record when he has started this season.

I suggest taking the Phillies to cover the run line in this one.