The visiting Athletics hope for a solid performance on Thursday as they look to steal a win at Safeco Field against the Seattle Mariners.

Brandon McCarthy, with a record of 1-0 on the season, gets the ball for the Athletics, while the Mariners trot Felix Hernandez to the mound in this one. He is 1-2 so far in 2011.



View Oakland vs Seattle Odds and Stats.

Betting Line:
Sportsbooks had set the Mariners as -155 favorites on the Sportsbook moneyline for this contest. The over under opened at 6.5 for bettors hoping to turn a profit on totals.



How They Match Up:
Offensively, the game matches up Seattle's No. 11 ranked American League offense (3.7 runs per game) against a Athletics defense and pitching staff that sits at No. 1 in the American League at 3.3 runs allowed per game. The Mariners have been averaging 7.5 hits per game, less than the Athletics have managed so far this season (8.2 hits on average).

Seattle owns the American League's No. 13 defense, allowing 5.2 men per game to cross the plate. That contrasts with Oakland's American League No. 1-rated defense.

In their last action, Oakland was a 5-3 loser at home against the Red Sox. Bettors on Boston at +100 on the moneyline collected their winnings from that game, while the total score (8) sent OVER bettors home happy as well. Oakland looks to rebound from a loss to the Red Sox, who beat them 5-3 on Wednesday behind a start from Clay Buchholz at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum.

The Mariners were a 3-2 loser in their most recent outing at home against the Tigers. That made Sportsbooks of bettors who got Detroit at -103 on the moneyline, while the total score (5) was good news for UNDER bettors. Seattle didn't get the job done in their last match, falling 3-2 to Detroit on Wednesday at Safeco Field.


Oakland Athletics Trends:
When playing on Thursday are 3-7
Before playing Seattle are 4-6
After playing Boston are 5-5
After a loss are 6-4

Seattle Mariners Trends:
When playing on Thursday are 6-4
Before playing Oakland are 5-5
After playing Detroit are 6-4
After a loss are 3-7

A few Athletics at Mariners trends to consider:
Oakland is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Seattle
Oakland is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Oakland's last 8 games on the road
Oakland is 6-2 SU in its last 8 games when playing Seattle
The total has gone UNDER in 9 of Seattle's last 12 games when playing at home against Oakland
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Seattle's last 7 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Seattle's last 7 games when playing Oakland
Seattle is 16-7 SU in its last 23 games when playing at home against Oakland


Next up:
Oakland at Seattle, Friday, April 22