San Francisco Giants vs Los Angeles Angels Pick – 4/18/2025

San Francisco Giants vs Los Angeles Angels Betting Preview

As the Los Angeles Angels and San Francisco Giants prepare to clash at Angel Stadium on April 18, 2025, both teams are looking to build on their recent performances. The Giants have been particularly impressive this season with a 13-6 record, showcasing a strong offensive unit that ranks 8th in MLB. On the other hand, the Angels sit at 9-9, and their recent play reflects an average season.

In their last outings, the Angels' offense showed promise with a recent uptick in power, ranking 3rd in MLB for home runs this season, but they’ll face a tough test against Giants’ ace Logan Webb, who has been stellar so far with an impressive 2.63 ERA and an elite ranking as the 6th best starting pitcher in MLB. Webb's ability to generate groundballs at a 53% rate could neutralize the Angels’ power-hitting approach, particularly as they struggle with high strikeout rates.

Projected starter Tyler Anderson for the Angels has performed well with a 2.87 ERA, but he has been fortunate, as indicated by his xFIP of 5.23 and an average projection of 2.7 earned runs allowed. Anderson is expected to pitch around 5.7 innings, and while he possesses a solid track record this season, the Giants' lineup features players who are capable of capitalizing on any mistakes made.

The Angels' bullpen ranks 9th overall; however, the Giants’ bullpen has fared even better, ranking 3rd. This disparity could be a critical factor as the game progresses. With a Game Total of 8.0 runs, oddsmakers are predicting a close contest, but the Giants currently hold the edge as favorites. Given their strong performance and the advanced projections, the Giants may be poised to secure a victory in this interleague matchup.

Quick Takes San Francisco Giants:

Logan Webb will have the handedness advantage over 7 opposing hitters in this game.

• Right-handed pitchers perform better against right-handed hitters (and the same for lefties). Having this advantage against a lot of opposing hitters can have a huge impact on whether a pitcher will perform well or struggle on any given day.

Wilmer Flores has been cold lately, with his seasonal exit velocity of 85-mph dropping to 80.3-mph in the past 7 days.

• Hitting the ball hard increases the chances of either a home run or the ball landing in fair territory for a hit before a fielder can get to it.

Projected catcher Patrick Bailey projects as an elite pitch framer, via the leading projection system (THE BAT).

• Pitch framing is a catcher's ability to make a ball look like a strike to the umpire, "stealing" strikes for his pitcher. This leads to more positive outcomes (like strikeouts) and fewer negative ones (like walks or earned runs).

Quick Takes Los Angeles Angels:

Tyler Anderson's 88.4-mph velocity on his fastball this year is a significant 1.1-mph decline from last season's 89.5-mph figure.

• Velocity is a key component to fastball success in generating strikeouts and preventing runs, so a pitcher whose velocity decreases will likely see worse results.

Batters such as Mike Trout with extreme flyball tendencies are usually more effective when facing pitchers like Logan Webb who skew towards the groundball end of the spectrum.

• This mostly has to do with the way the hitter's swing plane interacts with the pitch trajectory, and it can create boosted performance across all categories and hidden value few are considering.

According to the leading projection system (THE BAT), the Los Angeles Angels' bullpen grades out as the 9th-best out of all teams in Major League Baseball.

• Most bettors only consider the starting pitcher, but a strong bullpen sneakily creates a tougher matchup for the opposing offense and suppresses a game's runs.

Game Trends

• The San Francisco Giants have hit the 1st Five Innings (F5) Team Total Over in 49 of their last 81 away games (+13.43 Units / 14% ROI)
• Luis Matos has hit the Home Runs Over in 1 of his last 4 away games (+5.50 Units / 138% ROI)

San Francisco Giants vs Los Angeles Angels Prediction

Predicted Final Score: San Francisco Giants 4.76, Los Angeles Angels 3.18

• Date: April 18, 2025
• Venue: Angel Stadium
• Starting Pitchers:
  • Logan Webb - Giants
  • Tyler Anderson - Angels

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