Mariners (+130)
Mariners vs. Angels Free MLB Picks and Odds Breakdown (Archive)
Seattle Mariners vs Los Angeles Angels
Thursday, June 03, 2021 – 09:38 PM EDT at Angel Stadium of Anaheim
The Seattle Mariners will head to Angel Stadium on Thursday evening for the opening game of their American League West series showdown against the Los Angeles Angels.
Seattle has been heating up as of late with seven wins in its last nine games ahead of Wednesday’s series opener against the Oakland Athletics.
The Mariners currently sit in third place in the AL West standings with a 28-28 overall record through 56 games and trail the A’s by 3.5-games for the division lead. Meanwhile, Los Angeles sits in fourth place with a 25-30 overall mark. Can the Mariners stay hot on the road against the Angels on Thursday night?
The Mariners got some bad news earlier in the week, placing outfielder Kyle Lewis on the 10-day injured list with a small tear in the meniscus of his right knee. Lewis was in the midst of a strong season. After hitting just .161 during the month of April, the 25-year-old was heating up at the plate during the month of May, slashing .273./.368./.394 with three home runs and nine RBIs. He is hitting .246 with five home runs and a .726 OPS so far this season.
Left-hander Justus Sheffield is scheduled to toe the rubber in the series opener at Angel Stadium on Thursday. The 25-year-old has made nine starts this season, going 4-4 with a 4.96 ERA in 49 combined innings of work. Sheffield has been a different pitcher at home compared to on the road this season. He’s posted a 4-1 record with a 3.58 ERA in five starts at Safeco Field but is 0-3 with a 6.75 ERA in four road outings. In his previous trip to the mound, the Mariners’ lefty spun five innings of two-run ball in a 3-2 win over the Texas Rangers.
Sheffield is in the midst of an up-and-down campaign but he’s turned into a reliable innings-eater for the Mariners this season. He’s logged at least five innings of work in each of his first nine starts despite posting a career-low 6.43 K/9 strikeout rate. Sheffield has also stranded a career-low 64.9 percent of his baserunners this season. The Mariners’ left-hander has made three career starts against the Halos, finishing 1-2 with a 6.59 ERA and a 1.54 WHIP in those matchups. His last start versus Los Angeles came earlier this season when he tossed six innings of two-hit ball to come away with the win.
Per Baseball Savant, current Angels are batting .188 in 40 plate appearances off of the Mariners’ lefty heading into Thursday’s matchup. Right-hander Griffin Canning is expected to get the call for the Angels in the series opener on Thursday night. The 25-year-old is 4-3 with a 5.40 ERA in nine games (eight starts) this season but he’s pitched into the sixth inning or later in four of his last five starts.
The Angels’ right-hander turned in a quality start in his last appearances, giving up three runs in six frames with seven strikeouts and only two walks to earn the win. Canning has now won three of his last four decisions after posting a strong 3.60 ERA in five May starts.
While Canning’s season-long numbers aren’t exactly flattering, he’s shown signs of improvement in 2021. He’s currently striking out a career-high 10.13 batters per nine innings of work but he’s struggled with the long ball, giving up a career-worst 2.25 HR/9 through his first 40 innings.
His home run per fly ball rate has nearly doubled from last season, jumping from 11.8 percent in 2020 to 22.2 percent in 2021. Canning has made three career starts against the Mariners, going 1-0 with a lifetime-1.47 ERA and 0.82 WHIP. His last start against them came earlier this season when he spun 5 ⅓ innings of one-run (zero earned) ball in a win back on May 1.
According to Baseball Savant, Canning has limited the current Mariners’ roster to a slim .111 batting average with a 29.0 percent strikeout rate in 31 plate appearances. Following a seven-game homestand, the Mariners are scheduled to embark on a 10-game road trip beginning on Thursday night.
Canning has dominated the Mariners throughout his young career and the Angels’ right-hander has been showing signs of turning things around as of late, posting a 3.60 ERA over his last five starts. With that being said, Seattle has been red-hot as of late, scoring three runs or more in nine straight games while going 7-2 during that span.
Sheffield has also pitched better than his overall numbers might suggest, which should leave some value on the M’s in this spot. Take Seattle to open its series at Angel Stadium with a win on Thursday night. I like the Seattle Mariners for my MLB picks.
MLB Pick: Mariners ML (+130) at Betonline (visit our BetOnline Review)
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