Boston and Oakland start their six-game regular-season series with a three-game set at Oakland Coliseum, so we bring you the best Red Sox vs. Athletics betting pick and odds for Friday, June 3, 2022. 

The Red Sox are -145 road favorites for the opener, while the Athletics are listed as +134 moneyline dogs with a total of 7.0 runs on MyBookie Sportsbook. These two American League foes split their six-game series in 2021.  

The Sawx lack consistency                          

The Boston Red Sox are coming off a 7-1 thrashing of the Cincinnati Reds this past Wednesday. It was their fourth victory in the last nine outings, as the Sawx split a two-game interleague series to close down a seven-game homestand. 

Boston improved to 24-27 on the season, occupying the fourth spot in the AL East. Over the last couple of weeks, the Red Sox were slashing a terrific .309/.372/.543 while posting a lackluster 4.07 ERA and a .252 batting average against. 

Nathan Eovaldi will get the nod Friday, and the 32-year-old righty carries a 2-2 record, 3.77 ERA, and 1.12 WHIP across 57.1 innings of work (ten starts) in 2022. Last Saturday, Eovaldi pitched a complete game in a 5-3 victory over the Baltimore Orioles, allowing a couple of earned runs on seven hits and a walk while punching out six. 

The A’s lost six of their last seven games                   

The Oakland Athletics extended their losing streak to three games last Wednesday and got swept by the Houston Astros. They suffered a 5-4 defeat at home, tallying their sixth loss in seven games and ninth in their previous 12 outings. 

The 20-33 A’s are sitting bottom of the AL West, holding the second-worst record in the American League. They’ve recorded an underwhelming .230/.293/.368 triple-slash in the last two weeks to go with a poor 5.13 ERA and .260 batting average against. 

James Kaprielian will get the ball Friday, and the 28-year-old right-hander is 0-2 with an awful 5.93 ERA and 5.78 FIP in six starts (27.1 frames) this season. The Athletics are 4-0 in his previous four outings, but Kaprielian has recorded a 5.95 ERA across 19.2 innings of work in that span. 

Trends:

Boston: 

  • 10-5 in the last 15 games overall  
  • 6-3 in the last nine games against Oakland     

Oakland:

  • 1-6 in the last seven games overall 
  • 1-7 in the last seven games at home 

Boston Red Sox vs. Oakland Athletics Pick 

Nathan Eovaldi was 1-2 with a pedestrian 5.02 ERA and 5.97 FIP in May but finished the month on a high note. This is a favorable road matchup for Eovaldi, as the current A’s have one hit in 29 at-bats against him. 

On the other side, the current Red Sox have six hits in 31 at-bats against James Kaprielian, who’s allowed a whopping nine earned runs over his last two starts (9.1 frames). The Athletics’ bullpen has accounted for a miserable 6.23 ERA and .330 BABIP in the last ten days, so I’m backing the Red Sox to win. 

Pick: Take Boston Red Sox at -145                              

The Total:

The totals are set pretty low mostly because of Oakland’s toothless offense. However, the Red Sox’s bullpen has struggled all season while posting a 4.24 ERA and .301 BABIP over the last ten days. Oakland Coliseum is not a hitter-friendly environment, but I lean toward the over. 

Four of Oakland’s last six home games went over the total, and the A’s yielded 37 runs in that stretch. On the other side, six of Boston’s previous eight tilts produced eight or more runs in the total. 

Pick: Go over 7.0 runs at -120