Location & Time: Oakland Coliseum (Oakland, CA) at 10:05 PM EST
Where to Watch: Roots Sports SW, MLB.TV
Starters: Houston – Colin McHugh (15-7, 3.75 ERA) / Oakland – Aaron Brooks (1-2, 6.91 ERA)

This will be my detailed betting breakdown for this pivotal matchup between the Houston Astros and the Oakland Athletics. The A’s have won the first 2 games of the series and are looking to complete the sweep against the 1st-place Astros. A Houston loss and a Texas win would result in both teams being tied for the AL West division lead.

Current Moneyline odds for Astros-Athletics (September 8th, 2015)

>> Astros (-155) at Bovada.lv*
>> Athletics (+135) at Bovada.lv*

*Sign up for a new Bovada account and earn a 50% bonus instantly up to $250 when you make your first deposit.

As of this posting the reeling Houston Astros are still large favorites to win the final game in this 3-game series against the Oakland Athletics. However, do I think they somehow avoid the sweep against the cellar-dwellers of the AL West?

Not so fast…

The Oakland A’s bats have come alive against the ‘Stros as of late, so much so that they’ve actually won the last 5 meetings versus Houston. For whatever reason, the Athletics (60-79) are truly enjoying sticking it to these guys, and after a 10-9 win on Monday and a 4-0 win yesterday, it really looks like these Bay Area misfits have Houston’s number going into the series finale Wednesday night.

On the mound to attempt to stop the bleeding for the visiting Astros will be Colin McHugh, who’s actually been pretty consistent all season. His record of 15-7 is one of the best in the American League, but his ERA is close to 4.00 and that could be a problem for a team that’s struggling to keep it together heading into the final playoff stretch.

If McHugh can limit Oakland’s offense to even a handful of runs they should have enough firepower from their bats to pull out a clutch win and keep their lead in the AL West. He’ll need to dig deep tonight, especially with the streaking Rangers now within striking distance of the division lead.

Why you should probably bet the Game Totals (O/U)

Now as I mentioned above, I don’t think this game is a super lock for Houston, but it’s pretty close. I mentioned Houston’s consistent ace, Colin McHugh, as someone who could easily shut down Oakland in this matchup.

What I didn’t mention is that he’s also going to be facing a very unproven A’s pitcher in Aaron Brooks, who’s only 1-2 on the season and has an ERA approaching 7.00!

So basically, these 2 pitchers have a double-digit ERA between the two of them. Something has to give here folks – its simple math. The Astros are looking to keep their division lead and are hungry to do it against a team most figured they would sweep. Facing a shaky pitcher like Brooks should only help their prospects of winning heading into this game.

Houston’s first game in this series saw them put up NINE runs and lose. I think a very similar result could happen in this game just based on the offensive numbers these teams have already put up against one another throughout the 2015 season. That trend looks to continue with the A’s starting Brooks tonight against one of the more potent offenses in Major League Baseball.

Bet the OVER (7.5 runs) for the Astros-Athletics game today at Bovada.lv – and don’t forget to nab your 50% instant bonus today when you sign up and make your first deposit.