The Houston Astros will look to avenge their loss from yesterday and continue to build off their AL-best record as they face off with the playoff-hopeful Chicago White Sox in the Windy City. It is time to take a look at our MLB odds series, where our Astros-White Sox prediction and pick will be made.
Despite the loss on Monday, Houston has won eight of twelve games and is in control of leading the way for home-field advantage at the moment with their overall record of 75-42. Getting the nod for the ‘Stros will be the dominant Justin Verlander, who is 15-3 with an extremely minuscule 1.85 ERA on the season.
An extremely important win for the White Sox yesterday, Chicago managed to even up their home record at 29-29 while remaining only two games out of first place in the American League Central. The White Sox will certainly have the right guy for the job for game two later this evening as the un-hittable Dylan Cease will start things off for Chicago. Like Verlander, Cease has been one of baseball's best hurlers with a 12-5 record and a 1.96 ERA.
Here are the Astros-White Sox MLB odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
MLB Odds: Astros-White Sox Odds
Houston Astros: -1.5 (+134)
Chicago White Sox: +1.5 (-162)
Over: 7 (-108)
Under: 7 (-112)
Why The Astros Could Cover The Spread
Outside of the fact that they remain quite possibly one of the best teams in baseball, Tuesday's pitching duel is expected to be a masterpiece. With the likes of Verlander opposing Cease in his home ballpark, it is without question that the Astros will need to bring the bats and piece together strong at-bats to even up this series at one apiece.
With a phenomenal road mark of 36-24 on the year, the Astros have proven to the rest of the baseball world that they are just as destructive as visitors then they are in front of their home fans. While this wasn't the case yesterday, the Astros clearly have championship DNA written all over them which is why they have faired so wonderfully away from Minute Maid Park.
Not to mention, no team in baseball has been as effective from the mound as the Astros during the 2022 regular season. Alas, the Astros as a team has accumulated the second-best ERA in the league at 3.03 and led the way with 69 quality starts and a microscopic .213 batting average against. Simply put, the Astros have the chance to single handily make a run this postseason with their gritty starting pitching staff and cutthroat bullpen. With the expectation that Verlander will most likely perform like he usually does, the Astros are in good hands to cover the spread on Tuesday.
Why The White Sox Could Cover The Spread
Benefitting from strong pitching and opportunistic offense in yesterday's triumph, the White Sox have reeled off four-straight victories and have pushed themselves to the brink of playoff euphoria. Not only is Chicago right on the heels of Cleveland for the AL Central lead, but the White Sox have also become one of the many teams that are in the race for a Wild Card spot. With multiple paths possible leading to postseason play, each game from here on out for Chicago will possess major playoff implications.
Like the Astros, the White Sox will be sending out their ace in Dylan Cease in what should have a feel of a middle October matchup between both sides. With each team fighting for something before the regular season concludes, Chicago will need to be prepared for whatever wrinkles Houston throws their way. To begin, can the White Sox generate enough offense against Verlander? While opportunities will most likely be limited, Chicago needs to have their best hitters come up big for them.
Over the years, the White Sox have become quite familiar with Verlander as he has made 46 starts against them since the 2006 season. In those starts, the former Tiger has kept Chicago's bats in check by posting a 3.72 ERA in those appearances. As a whole, the White Sox will need to use their fourth-best in the majors .259 batting average to their advantage to get Verlander's pitch count up so he can make a swift exit and they can start getting after the Houston bullpen.
Additionally, Cease is more than due for a tremendous outing against the ‘Stros. He has lost all three of his starts versus Houston and has posted a porous 6.60 ERA when facing off with Houston.
Final Astros-White Sox Prediction & Pick
On paper and in comparison to the rest of the MLB scheduled slate on Tuesday, this epic matchup has the makings of being one of the more competitive contests that baseball has to offer. At the end of the day, this one comes down to Cease's struggles against the Astros while Verlander has remained steady in keeping the White Sox off-balanced throughout his career. Side with the team fighting for the best record in the American League in this one, as it isn't often that Houston drops back-to-back games.
Final Astros-White Sox Prediction & Pick: Astros -1.5 (+134)
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