Subscribe
Follow Us
A vital AL Central matchup is on tap to take place as the Chicago White Sox will battle it out with the Minnesota Twins at Target Field. You know what time it is! Let's take an exclusive sneak peek at our MLB odds series, where our White Sox-Twins prediction and pick will be unveiled.
Chicago enters game two of this series after putting on a show in Minneapolis by dismantling the Twins by a score of 12-2. It was the perfect recipe for success for the White Sox, as they ripped the cover off of the baseball in the batters box and kept Minnesota hitters off-balanced from the rubber. Tasked with defeating the Twins for the second time in as many games will be RHP Michael Kopech. The righty is 2-6 with a 3.35 ERA on the 2022 season.
It was certainly a day to forget for the Twins as not much went right for them on Thursday. Now at 49-42 and still 3.5 games up on Cleveland in the division race, Minnesota will need to be careful with Chicago gaining ground. The Twins will call upon the services of lefty Devin Smeltzer who is 4-2 with a 3.92 ERA in eleven starts total on the year.
Here are the White Sox-Twins MLB odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
MLB Odds: White Sox-Twins Odds
Chicago White Sox: +1.5 (-176)
Minnesota Twins: -1.5 (+146)
Over: 9 (+100)
Under: 9 (-122)
*Watch MLB Games LIVE with fuboTV (click for free trial)
Why The White Sox Could Cover the Spread
In dominating fashion, the White Sox have a three-game winning streak under their belts after outscoring their opponents in the last 27 innings of play 21-3. With quality efforts from the bats and pitching arms, Chicago has slowly but surely worked their way back into the American League Central Race. With teams like the Twins and Guardians hovering around the .500 mark, the opportunity to go streaking is there for the taking.
First things first, a repeat of recent performances from Luis Robert and Jose Abreu would do wonders in an attempt to cover the spread and win a fourth consecutive contest. On Thursday, it was Robert who supplied the offense with more than enough firepower after a three-hit outing that included his first career grand slam in the 12-2 rout. Not to mention, but some would think that Robert is busy playing slow-pitch softball with his 9-3 stat line over the course of his last three games. Additionally, Robert has hit two homers and driven in eight runs over his torrid stretch.
His partner in crime in Abreu has also extended his on-base streak to 20 games as the former AL MVP is 9-27 with two round-trippers and six RBIs in seven games versus the Twins this season. In fact, the dynamic duo of Robert and Abreu may be all the White Sox need to cover the spread on Friday.
After a rough outing from Kopech his last time out, the White Sox hurler will look to have a short memory ahead of his start against the Twins. In his seven career appearances (three starts) versus Minnesota, the flamethrower owns a 1-1 record with a 3.78 ERA.
Why The Twins Could Cover the Spread
From the beginning of the season, the Twins have constantly been atop the AL Central leaderboard. Now, a little over half the season has been played and while they still are top dogs in the division, there is no shortage of teams on their tail. Regardless, the Twins are a bunch that is capable of stringing together some much-needed wins. Even though Minnesota has gone down in defeat five of their past seven matchups, the Twins have an absurd amount of talent at seemingly every position.
To begin, it is hard to choose a flaw when it comes to the Twins' bats. Through their first 91 games of the 2022 season, Minnesota is a top-ten-hitting team in numerous statistical categories. This includes scoring the eighth-most runs in baseball (413), the seventh-best batting average (.254), and even the fourth-highest on-base percentage (.325). As a whole, there aren't many lineups in baseball as tenacious as the one that Minnesota possesses. However, stranding runners as they did on Thursday certainly will not do this team any favors. The Twins went 1-10 with runners in scoring position and left 10 baserunners which is something that cannot be repeated if Minnesota wants to secure the victory.
Pitching-wise, the Twins will be led by Devin Smeltzer who is looking to get on track in his career versus the White Sox. Smeltzer has obtained a lofty 15.00 ERA in his two career appearances back in 2020, but both of those outings came in relief form. As a starter, the 26-year-old has been solid outside of his last start in which he was bombarded for seven runs in 3 1/3 innings pitched against the Rangers.
Final White Sox-Twins Prediction & Pick
As each game of the 2022 MLB season comes to pass, the importance of each contest becomes that much greater. In this case, the White Sox can stir the pot exponentially within the American League Central by reeling off another win against the Twins. With the bats still hot from their 12-run explosion from yesterday, Chicago has what it takes to give the Twins trouble for a second consecutive night.
Final White Sox-Twins Pick: White Sox +1.5 (-176)
