This is an 8* SUPER-BLOWOUT on the Oakland Athletics.

I think the underachieving A's salvage the finale of this three game set. Oakland has in fact lost four straight and turns to Jon Lester (13-7, 2.51 ERA) to snap the slide; Lester is already 3-0 for his new team and allowed three runs while striking out nine over six frames in a win over the Royals on Tuesday. In fact, the last time he lost was on June 7th in Detroit, the southpaw has gone 7-0 with a tiny 1.46 ERA in 11 starts since. Also note that Lester is 2-1 with a 3.32 ERA vs. Atlanta lifetime. The home side sends lefty Mike Minor (4-8, 5.33 ERA) to the hill; Minor gave up three runs over 6 2/3's innings in a 4-2 loss to the Dodgers on Tuesday. Minor has been hit-or-miss all season and while he's been a bit better of late, note that he's 0-3 with a 3.46 ERA in his last six interleague outings. For the most part MLB handicapping comes down to starting pitching and I'm going to give Lester the slight nod in this matchup and that will be more than enough to tip the scales in our favor in this one; play on OAKLAND.

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