Athletics vs. Angels Prediction and Odds for Sunday, May 22 (Have Faith in Starting Pitchers)

The 25-17 Los Angeles Angels snapped a four-game losing streak yesterday and hope to notch a series victory as they host the 17-25 Oakland Athletics today at 4:07 p.m. EST.

Oakland is just 2-5 over its last seven and will send Cole Irvin to the mound. Irvin has a 2.93 ERA through five starts but has been splendid of late. In his last three outings, Irvin has a 1.06 ERA and faces an Angels lineup today that he's had success against.

Los Angeles will counter with Patrick Sandoval, who has a quality start in three of his last four appearances and just limited the Athletics to one run and four hits over six innings last week.

Can Sandoval notch another strong performance against Oakland or will Irvin lead the visitors to an upset victory? Perhaps the total has value instead of a side?

Let's check out the odds from WynnBET Sportsbook to help answer those questions and find some value in this Athletics vs Angels matchup:

Athletics vs Angels Odds, Run Line and Total

Run Line:

• Athletics +1.5 (-120)
• Angels -1.5 (+100)

Moneyline:

• Athletics: +177
• Angels: -195

Total:

• 7.5 (Over -120/Under +100)

Athletics vs Angels Prediction and Pick

I've got a lot of faith in both of these pitchers. Irvin seems to have settled in nicely and pitched well against the Angels last season. In his last three starts against Los Angeles, Irvin allowed just two runs in 19.1 innings and notched a quality start in each game.

But Patrick Sandoval has a history of success against Oakland as well, amassing a 1.78 ERA over five appearances, including last week's one-run gem. The A's offense has been better of late, especially against left-handed pitchers, but they haven't scored more than five runs in 10 consecutive games and I'm inclined to trust Sandoval's track record against them.

I'll admit I'm a bit concerned about each team's bullpen, especially after a couple of close games to open the series. As a result, I'll stay away from the full-game total. But targeting the first five innings allows us to avoid any mishaps from relievers and trust the body of work of each starter.

WynnBET is offering the first five innings under 4.0 runs at -105 and that's where I'm going today. The Angels rank second in MLB in allowing only 1.43 runs per game in the first five at home and the first five over/under is 4-12-3 in their home games as a result.

Oakland, meanwhile, allows just 1.86 runs per game in the first five innings on the road (fourth in MLB) and average only 1.88 runs per game in those innings (26th). I expect these trends to continue and will happily take the first five innings under 4.0 at -105.

Pick: First Five Innings Under 4.0 (-105)

Follow all of Joe Summers' betting picks here.