Premiere Sports Betting, Sportsbook Sign Up Bonus

Neither the Angels nor Tigers are going to be in the playoffs this season, but Wednesday night’s matchup in Detroit is intriguing simply because Halos dual-threat star Shohei Ohtani is on the mound. He’s a runaway favorite on the MLB odds to win AL MVP.

How to Bet Angels at Tigers MLB Odds & TV Info

When: Wednesday, 7:10 PM ET
Where: Comerica Park
Probable pitchers (away/home): Shohei Ohtani/Tarik Skubal
TV: MLB Extra Innings
Stream/gameday audio: https://www.mlb.com/live-stream-games/
Opening MLB Lines: Angels -150, Tigers +140 (total 8.5)

Why Bet on LA Angels?

The Angels current road trip features 10 games in 11 days in five cities (New York/Detroit/Cleveland/Baltimore). The trip marks the Angels’ first five city road trip since April 20 – May 3, 1990 (Minnesota/Boston/New York/Baltimore/Seattle).

With a fairly big game here, Justin Upton could become the eighth active player to reach 1,000 RBI, joining Albert Pujols, Miguel Cabrera, Robinson Cano, Nelson Cruz, Evan Longoria, Ryan Zimmerman and Joey Votto.

Since 2011, Angels are 43-24 (.642) against the Tigers, marking second-best win percentage against any A.L. opponent in that span (.662 winning percentage vs. White Sox (45-23)).

It’s ace Shohei Ohtani (7-1) on the mound for the Angels. Ohtani yielded two runs over six innings last Thursday in a win over the Blue Jays. Ohtani recorded six strikeouts and also issued three walks. He gave up only three hits, as a Teoscar Hernández RBI single and RBI double from Randal Grichuk in the fourth inning represented the only damage against him. He also went 1-for-3 at the plate with a double and a walk.

In 25 innings across four starts since the All-Star break, the right-hander has struck out 25 hitters while keeping opposing teams to a .169 batting average. He has a 1.44 ERA and a record of 3-0 in that span.

“Physically, I feel really good, but I feel like I’m getting better each outing and I still haven’t hit my potential yet,” Ohtani said through interpreter Ippei Mizuhara. “I think I have room to get better going forward.”

Ohtani has helped the Angels to stay near .500 since the All-Star break, while also setting the tone for the rotation. He’s compiled a 2.93 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 112/39 K/BB ratio across 92 innings (17 starts) this season.

Angels manager Joe Maddon said he believes Ohtani might be looking to go deeper into his starts. But given that Ohtani only pitched 1 2/3 innings in ’20 after having Tommy John surgery in ’18, Maddon said the club is being watchful of his workload.

“We’re still keeping an eye on [him],” Maddon said. “He hardly pitched at all last year. Whatever the jump is, it’s going to be dramatic, so we’re cognizant of that.”

Why Bet on Detroit?

Detroit and Los Angeles played earlier this season with the Angels winning three-of-four games. The Tigers have not won a season series against the Angels since 2010. With five games remaining this season against AL West foes, Detroit has already clinched a .500 record against the division for the first time since 2016 (16-16).

Detroit has two players on the injured list in second baseman Niko Goodrum and excellent rookie outfielder Akil Baddoo but it’s possible that Baddoo is activated by Wednesday. He is slashing .267/.333/.467 with 10 HRs, 45 RBI, 44 runs, and 14 steals and is an AL Rookie of the Year candidate. Goodrum, 29, is expected to miss a few weeks with a Grade 1 left groin strain. Through 65 games this season, Goodrum is hitting .224 with six home runs, 21 RBIs, 22 walls and 84 strikeouts. He has played shortstop, second base, center field, left field and first base in 2021.

If he didn’t homer Tuesday, future Tigers Hall of Famer Miguel Cabrera is looking to become the 28th player to reach the 500-homer milestone and the first to do so while playing for the Tigers. Additionally, Cabrera would be the sixth player born outside the United States to reach 500 homers, joining Albert Pujols, Sammy Sosa, Rafael Palmeiro, Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz.

It’s lefty Tarik Skubal on the mound for Detroit. Skubal shut out the Orioles for six innings in the Tigers’ 5-2 victory last Wednesday. Skubal has opened August with 11 scoreless innings to improve to 8-10 with a 4.10 ERA for the year. While the 8-10 record isn’t great, he leads the team in wins, and his 4.10 ERA is a step in the right direction after recording a 5.63 ERA during his 2020 rookie campaign. Skubal has shown good strikeout stuff throughout his time in the majors, as he now has 164 strikeouts across 148.1 career MLB innings.

Skubal’s exit velocity and hard-hit rate are both in the bottom-15 percent of baseball, and his 16.3-degree launch angle is too high for comfort. He also allows a fairly high amount of contact at 76.4%. His 4.07 SIERA does suggest that his ERA is in line with his batted-ball profile, but the other underlying metrics are concerning. Still, Skubal is on track to become the first Tigers pitcher with 10 wins since Justin Verlander (pre-Astros trade) and Michael Fulmer both had 10 in 2017.