MLB Daily Picks – FREE pick for July 21st is Oakland

MLB Daily Picks FREE pick of the day is Oakland:

Fixture: Oakland @ Los Angeles Angels
Time/Date: 3:35 PM ET, July 21, 2013
Pick: Oakland
Odds: -120 (1.83 in decimal odds) @ Pinnacle

This will be the final game of 3 game series played in Los Angeles. LA Angels took first 2 games, 4-1 on Friday night and 2-0 yesterday. Despite losing last 3 games against the Angels Oakland is leading the season series 5-3, outscoring LA Angels 45-36.

Oakland is leading American League West with 56-41 record. They are 26-26 on the road. LA Angels are 3rd in the same division with 46-49 record, 9 games behind Oakland.

Oakland has scored just 1 run, 10 hits and 20 strikeouts in losing the first two games of this series without Yoenis Cespedes. He hurt himself in the third round of batting practice on Friday. Caspedes is day to day, but expected to play today.

Bartolo Colon will be starting for Oakland today. He is 12-3, 2.70 ERA in 19 starts this season. Colon is 9-1 in his last 12 starts, allowing 3 runs twice and 2 or fewer in each of the other 10 outings. In 126.2 innings of work combined Colon has allowed just 15 walks while striking out 70. Colon is 10-6 in 21 career outings against the Angels, but he hasn't faced them this year. He went 2-1, 1.66 ERA in 3 starts against them last season. Oakland is 5-0 in Colon's last 5 road starts, 4-0 in Colon's last 4 starts as a road favorite, 5-0 in Colon's last 5 starts during game 3 of a series, 5-0 in Colon's last 5 starts as a favorite of -110 to -150, 5-0 in Colon's last 5 road starts vs. a team with a losing record, 10-1 in Colon's last 11 starts vs. a team with a losing record and 14-2 in Colon's last 16 starts as a favorite.

LA Angels are sending out Jerome Williams, who is 5-5, 4.60 ERA after 12 starts and 11 relief appearances in 2013. Williams is 0-2, 19.13 ERA in his last 3 starts, failing to last past the fourth inning in any of them. He has allowed four runs over 9 innings in 3 relief appearances against Oakland this year. Williams is 3-3, 3.86 ERA in 7 career starts against them. LA Angels are 2-8 in Williams' last 10 starts vs. a team with a winning record, 2-8 in Williams' last 10 home starts and 1-5 in Williams' last 6 home starts vs. a team with a winning record.

Oakland is 10-4 in the last 14 meetings in Los Angeles and I expect them to win today.