September 23, 2026 • 9:02 PM EDT
Updated 1 hours ago
Springs and Urena Start Game 158 in Oakland as Odds Drift Toward the Angels
Jeffrey Springs takes the mound for the Oakland Athletics tonight at Oakland Coliseum, hoping to salvage a brutal 2026 campaign against rookie Walbert Urena and the Los Angeles Angels. Springs’ 6.18 ERA signals a nightmare year, and it’s made worse with multiple A’s starters out and the Angels sending their best rookie right-hander for one more run.
Springs hasn’t found any rhythm. He’s failed to go six innings in any of his last six starts and is giving up power to both sides of the plate. Opponents are slugging over .500 since June. The Athletics are battered: BDL data confirms Kurtz, Soderstrom, Wilson, and Rooker all on the IL. That leaves Oakland desperately mixing in bench bats, and it shows. The A’s are 3-7 in their last 10 and have been outscored by 221 runs on the season, one of the worst marks in MLB.
Walbert Urena stands in sharp contrast. He owns a 2.74 ERA and has owned this A’s lineup in two of three starts. The single hard-luck blowup, 7 earned runs last time out versus Oakland, could scare some bettors. Don’t fall into the trap. His longer-term form is elite for a rookie, with a WHIP below 1.10 and right-handed batters hitting just .227 overall. Against a punchless, injury-depleted A’s, Urena has the right script to get back on track.
The data says the A’s offense is nowhere close to a full-strength MLB lineup, and Springs isn’t going to save them. This isn’t a game you want to overthink. The public wants fireworks after Urena’s bad start, but Springs’ year-long futility and Oakland’s roster patchwork lean this toward a grind.
The Blowup Start is the Outlier. Urena Has the Edge Through Five
Related: Detroit Tigers, Oakland Athletics Officially Eliminated: What It Means for Your MLB Bets Today
Spend any time with Urena’s game logs and the last Oakland outing jumps off the page, but it doesn’t fit the pattern. In his other 25 starts, Urena’s allowed more than three runs just twice. The strikeout stuff plays, the command is steady, and the trends say his ERA regression is minor, not catastrophic.
Springs, meanwhile, can’t claim a single start this season against an above-average offense where he limited the damage. Against the Angels’ healthier top five, he’s facing a group that punishes lefties when they don’t miss bats. With Oakland missing their biggest bats and Springs showing no recent form, the writing’s on the wall for the Angels to jump out early and for offense overall to underwhelm. Don’t overlook the impact of late-season attrition: it absolutely changes bullpen deployment and lineup focus.
- Jeffrey Springs’ 6.18 ERA and .500+ opponent slug since June: the A’s are live to be buried early again.
- Walbert Urena’s 2.74 ERA in 26 starts, including two strong outings vs. Oakland: don’t overweight one bad game.
- The Athletics’ 3-7 stretch and -221 run differential: fading anything tied to Oakland offense is the sharp play.
- Multiple A’s regulars out (Kurtz, Soderstrom, Wilson, Rooker): the lineup power index drops to bottom-five in MLB.
- Late-season context: both teams out of contention so bullpen usage may get weird, but neither side boasts enough depth for offense to explode if the under inflates.
Key Takeaways
- Back the Angels First Five (F5) moneyline, Springs has nowhere left to hide, and Urena is better than his last result.
- Lean under 8.5 or higher on the full game total if Urena’s blowup has pushed the number northward in public markets.
- Fade Oakland’s team total overs and run-producing props, only bench bats remain, no power threats healthy.
- Target Angels’ F5 run line if the alternate is available below -130.
- Ignore recency bias off Urena’s last Oakland start; trust season-long stuff and matchup data.
- Monitor late lineup scratches for the A’s, they’re running out of MLB-quality options.
“We’re asking a lot from our young arms, but Urena’s earned this chance, he’s not rattled by one rough outing.”Joe Maddon, Los Angeles Angels manager
This article was produced with AI assistance by Ben Gale, with editorial standards and betting methodology overseen by Richard Gale (senior gambling industry executive, ThePicks founder), and reviewed by the ThePicks editorial team. All statistics sourced from live BDL API data and verified source material. All betting opinions are those of ThePicks analysts.
https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/game-158-angels-athletics-game-004000921.html
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