MLB Baseball
2026-07-09 - Athletics at Detroit Tigers
A Sports Betting Pick by FirstDown
United States : Major League Baseball
Thursday 9th July 2026 - Scheduled 6:40pm EST
11:40pm (British Time)
Preview
A win on Wednesday keeps things ticking forwards for the Detroit Tigers (42-50) and they are feeling so much better after some of the key starting pitchers have returned from injury. There are still some big decisions to be made before the trade deadline is reached at the beginning of August, but overall the Tigers have to be feeling pretty happy about how things are moving right now.
The All Star Break is coming up and the Tigers have moved to 5.5 games of the leaders in the American League Central, which is not the deepest Division in terms of quality.
They continue this series with the Athletics (41-51) by handing the ball to another member of the starting pitching rotation that has plenty of experience and can be better than what has been shown in his first few months in this uniform.
Framber Valdez played the first eight years of his Major League career with the Houston Astros and so will be very familiar with the Athletics. The fact is that the road team have lost five in a row and are playing with a lack of confidence and that should help Valdez who has yet to really find his consistency on the mound in 2026.
A 4-6 record and 4.29 ERA in eighteen starts this season means Framber Valdez is on course to have his worst ERA since his sophomore season when he was largely operating out of the bullpen. He signed a big contract with the Detroit Tigers thanks to the consistent level produced in the regular season and the deep Playoff experiences and so the Tigers will believe more is to come.
There did look to be some positive momentum building with the Framber Valdez performances in June, but he has suffered back to back poor starts. The pitcher has allowed nine runs in 11 Innings thrown against the Astros and Texas Rangers and will be looking for better against this American League West team.
Last year, Framber Valdez pitched against the Athletics twice and held them to three runs in 13 Innings thrown and his team won both.
The Athletics will counter by handing the ball to Jack Perkins who has a 2-4 record and 6.75 ERA in twenty-three appearances in 2026, although this will be his seventh start. The second year pitcher has had his difficulties in 2026 and has a 0-2 record and 8.10 ERA in the six starts made, while allowing at least three runs in five of those outings.
Jack Perkins has not been able to go as deep as he may have hoped in those starts, and allowed seven runs without leaving the 4th Inning last time out.
This will be the first time Jack Perkins has pitched against the Detroit Tigers either in a start or out of the bullpen.
The Tigers have scored six runs in each of the first two games in the series and have won both.
Prediction
Both pitchers have had some difficult moments over the last month, but Framber Valdez has the experience to bounce back.
His previous performances against the Athletics will offer plenty of belief, while Jack Perkins has struggled with his consistency on the mound and that may show up in the final score.
The Pick :
Detroit Tigers 6-2 Athletics
