Subscribe
Follow Us
Welcome baseball fans and bettors to this treat of a matchup, as two teams with lofty preseason expectations between the Chicago White Sox and Tampa Bay Rays will square off on Saturday. It is time to take a sneak peek at our MLB odds series, where our White Sox-Rays prediction and pick will be revealed for all to see.
After coming out on the short end of things in a 6-3 loss on Friday, the White Sox will look to even up the series by sending out RHP Dylan Cease with his 4-2 record and 3.69 ERA in his ten total starts.
With the impressive win over the ‘Sox, Tampa Bay now moves to 31-21 and has come out victorious in three straight matchups. Tasked with leading the Rays to yet another win will be Drew Rasmussen, who has generated near identical numbers to his pitching counterpart with a 5-2 overall record and a slightly lower 3.47 ERA.
Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the White Sox-Rays MLB odds.
MLB odds: White Sox-Rays Odds
Chicago White Sox: -1.5 (+188)
Tampa Bay Rays: +1.5 (-230)
Over: 7 (+104)
Under: 7 (-128)
*Watch MLB Games LIVE with fuboTV (click for free trial)
Why The White Sox Could Cover the Spread
Chicago has mostly been a group that has hovered around the .500 mark for the majority of the year, but a dry spell in victories has hit the White Sox harder than ever as of late. At 23-27 and now sitting four games behind the Twins for first place in the AL Central, Chicago has been defeated in six of their last seven contests which includes a four-game losing streak. Things aren't necessarily peachy for the White Sox, but there are still more than a couple of reasons why they have a chance to cover the spread on Saturday against the Rays.
Offensively, Chicago hitters are slashing an average of .237, which ranks 18th among the 30 teams in Major League baseball. They have also scored only 181 runs, which would put them in the bottom five of all qualifying clubs in baseball. While injuries have played a part in an underwhelming lineup, this is more than enough to be concerned if you are a White Sox fan.
The grass is not always greener on the other side, as the White Sox may be even worse off on the mound. With an inflated ERA of 4.24 and with the squad only recording 12 quality starts up to this point, Chicago could be in a world of hurt when looking ahead to their critical matchup against Tampa Bay.
With the White Sox seemingly spinning out of control, Chicago's best shot at covering the spread will come from Dylan Cease, who may act as the lone bright spot and source of hope for the visiting team at Tropicana Field. Throughout his career when going toe-to-toe versus the Rays, Cease has been very productive with a 1-0 record and a 1.59 ERA in two career starts.
Why The Rays Could Cover the Spread
Oh, how the tables have turned! It didn't seem very long ago that the Rays were in a similar position like the White Sox are currently in, but it's crazy what a little winning can do to the morale of a squad. Now sitting in a very comfortable position in a still ever so crowded AL East, Tampa Bay will be eager to gain separation from the third-place Blue Jays who sit only a half-game behind them, and also will look to keep pace of the Yankees, who are proving to be one of the better overall teams that baseball has to offer in 2022. Don't tell Tampa bay that however, as the Rays are getting a slumping White Sox team at just the right team to showcase just how good they can really be this season.
After finding their bats within the past couple of weeks, the Rays have seemingly out-slugged their opponents, which has resulted in Tampa Bay winning seven out of their last eleven ball games. One game-changing name to keep an eye out on that may be the difference in this one should be first baseman Ji-Man Choi, who has recorded a hit in four straight games including driving in three runs in the 6-3 victory on Friday.
With the offense finally putting the pieces together, the elite pitching prowess that the Rays present themselves with can now mow down hitters without feeling an added sense of pressure. The arms of the Rays have simply put been Tampa Bay's most dangerous weapon out on the diamond in 2022, as they are only letting hitters compile a .221 average against and have and possess an elite WHIP at 1.11. Combine these numbers with the fact that the scheduled hurler in Rasmussen is on the up and up, and the Rays have all of the pieces to cover the spread against their American League foes.
Final White Sox-Rays Prediction & Pick
These are two clubs that are headed in two completely opposite directions, and this matchup should prove to be no different. Not only is the value there with the Rays acting out as underdogs at +1.5, but they should have their way with a White Sox team that has become an absolute mess of late.
Final White Sox-Rays Pick: Rays +1.5 (-230)
