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The Boston Red Sox will take on the Chicago White Sox on Thursday night. It's time to continue our MLB odds series and make a Red Sox-White Sox prediction and pick.
These teams have had somewhat similar seasons so far. The Red Sox are a disappointing 20-23, a record that has them ranked fourth in the highly competitive AL East. The rival New York Yankees are dominating the division, so Boston needs to turn things around before they fall out of the division race completely. The White Sox have been similarly disappointing, as they've only gone 22-21. Chicago was expected to dominate their division this season, but they aren't even in first place right now. These teams split the first two games of this series, so both should be looking to take the rubber match and seal the series here.
Here are the Red Sox-White Sox MLB odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
MLB Odds: Red Sox-White Sox Odds
Boston Red Sox: -1.5 (+138)
Chicago White Sox: +1.5 (-166)
Over: 9 (-114)
Under: 9 (-106)
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Why The Red Sox Could Cover The Spread
The Red Sox will have one of their best pitchers on the mound for this contest. Michael Wacha has not only been one of the best pitchers in Boston but one of the best pitchers in the entire MLB. Over six outings, he's earned a 1.76 ERA and a 1.01 WHIP. Even more impressive is the fact that Wacha has been able to put up those numbers against great teams. He pitched five scoreless innings against the Minnesota Twins, five innings of one-run ball against the Toronto Blue Jays, and nearly six innings of scoreless baseball against the Los Angeles Angels. Those are three of the best offensive teams in the MLB, and Wacha pretty much completely shut them down. He should continue to pitch well in this game.
Unfortunately for the White Sox, they don't have the same quality of starting pitcher here. Dallas Keuchel has been absolutely horrendous this season, posting a 6.60 ERA and even 2.00 WHIP. Those are two of the worst numbers in the MLB. He's been shelled in nearly every single outing this season. While Keuchel did hold the Red Sox to two runs in his start against them in early May, the Red Sox offense didn't struggle at all in that game. Boston's lineup earned a .343 batting average against Keuchel while earning themselves eight hits. A similar offensive output with more runs should take place here.
Why The White Sox Could Cover The Spread
While the White Sox have been disappointing this season, they've begun to turn things around. Chicago has won four of their last six games, including two victories against the New York Yankees. Their batting average has jumped from .212 in April to .251 in the month of May. The White Sox have also seen a similar jump in OBP, OPS, and slugging percentage. It's clear that Chicago has a ton of momentum heading into this contest, and that should help them keep things close.
Home field advantage will help the White Sox in this game. Keuchel has been significantly better when he pitches at home, as his ERA drops from 12.27 on the road to 3.32 in Guaranteed Rate Field. Wacha has also been a little bit worse on the road, which should help this streaking White Sox offense. The Boston offense has struggled on the road at times, earning themselves a lower batting average, slugging percentage, and OPS away from home. Overall, this looks like a decent spot for the White Sox to try to cover.
Final Red Sox-White Sox Prediction & Pick
Neither side of this spread looks great. Instead, the under is the best pick on the board. Wacha has been elite this season, and Keuchel has been decent at home. Lock in the under and don't look back.
Final Red Sox-White Sox Prediction & Pick: Under 9 (-106)
