Boston faces Oakland following Porcello's strong performance

Published

Oakland Athletics (14-18, fourth in the AL West) vs. Boston Red Sox (13-17, fourth in the AL East)

Boston; Wednesday, 1 p.m. EDT

PITCHING PROBABLES: Athletics: Mike Fiers (2-2, 7.03 ERA, 1.53 WHIP, 25 strikeouts) Red Sox: Hector Velazquez (2-2, 3.86 ERA, 1.47 WHIP, 15 strikeouts)

LINE: Red Sox favored by 1 1/2 runs; over/under is 10 runs

BOTTOM LINE: Both Oakland and Boston are looking to win the series with a victory.

The Red Sox are 7-7 on their home turf. Boston has hit 32 home runs this season, the lowest total in the American League. Mitch Moreland leads the team with eight, averaging one every 11.1 at-bats.

The Athletics are 4-10 on the road. Oakland has a team on-base percentage of .314, good for third in the American League. Marcus Semien leads the team with a mark of .384. The Red Sox won the last meeting 5-1. Rick Porcello earned his second victory and Moreland went 1-for-3 with a home run and two RBIs for Boston. Aaron Brooks took his third loss for Oakland.

TOP PERFORMERS: Moreland leads the Red Sox with eight home runs and has 17 RBIs. Michael Chavis is 10-for-32 with a double, three home runs and eight RBIs over the last 10 games for Boston.

Semien leads the Athletics with 38 hits and has 16 RBIs. Robbie Grossman is 4-for-28 with a double, two home runs and three RBIs over the last 10 games for Oakland.

LAST 10 GAMES: Red Sox: 6-4, .252 batting average, 3.42 ERA, outscored opponents by 13 runs

Athletics: 3-7, .217 batting average, 4.89 ERA, outscored by 16 runs

Red Sox Injuries: Brian Johnson: 10-day IL (elbow), Nathan Eovaldi: 10-day IL (elbow), Dustin Pedroia: 10-day IL (knee), Eduardo Nunez: 10-day IL (back), Brock Holt: 10-day IL (eye).

Athletics Injuries: Lou Trivino: day-to-day (thumb), Sean Manaea: 60-day IL (shoulder), Daniel Gossett: 60-day IL (elbow), Marco Estrada: 10-day IL (lumbar strain), Jharel Cotton: 60-day IL (elbow), Nick Martini: 10-day IL (knee), Mark Canha: 10-day IL (wrist), Matt Olson: 10-day IL (hand), Chris Herrmann: 60-day IL (knee).