The Chicago White Sox will take their talents to the West Coast to take on the Oakland Athletics this weekend. With that said, it’s a good time to check out our MLB odds series, which includes a White Sox-Athletics prediction and pick, laid out below.
Chicago has gone 69-68 on the season, third place in the AL Central, sitting two games behind Cleveland for the division lead. Once again, Chicago has struggled with injuries and inconsistency and has frustrated the fan base for the entire 2022 season. Clinging to their playoff lives, Chicago needs a strong performance against the lowly Athletics this weekend.
Oakland is mercifully nearing the end of a disheartening season, with their 50-87 record representing the worst mark in the American League, and second worst across all of baseball. The club is in the midst of what could be a lengthy rebuild, and their stadium remains in disarray. Not much has been going right for this once proud club.
Here are the White Sox-Athletics MLB odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
MLB Odds: White Sox-Athletics Odds
Chicago White Sox: -1.5 (-120)
Oakland Athletics: +1.5 (+100)
Over: 7 (-115)
Under: 7 (-105)
Why The White Sox Could Cover The Spread
Coming off a near no-hit performance in his last time out, Chicago will send Dylan Cease to the mound. Cease is 13-6 with a 2.13 ERA and 197 strikeouts in 156 innings. Cease has struck out an impressive 31.4% of the batters he has faced. Throwing a slider roughly 43% of the time, Cease has held batters to a lowly .117 batting average against the pitch. Batters have struck out 118 times against Cease's dastardly slider. Chicago's bullpen is also partly to blame for the team's struggles, ranking 21st with a 4.12 ERA. Setup man Kendall Graveman has enjoyed a strong season, with a 2.54 ERA in his 56.2 innings. Closer Liam Hendriks has been good, not great, season, with 31 saves and a 3.31 ERA in 49 appearances.
Chicago's offense has sorely missed the contributions of key players. Still, Andrew Vaughn leads the team with 15 home runs, despite missing some time with injury. Jose Abreu is second with 14 home runs, but leads the team with a .309 batting average, 65 RBI, and 32 doubles, playing in a team-leading 135 games. Gavin Sheets and Luis Robert have each hit 12 home runs, while Robert has added 11 stolen bases. Tim Anderson paces the team with 13 steals but has missed a month with hand issues. Eloy Jimenez has only played in 62 games but has belted 10 home runs while hitting .305.
Why The Athletics Could Cover The Spread
Oakland is in a tough spot, with almost nothing left to play for. The team will send promising young prospect JP Sears to the mound. Sears was acquired from the Yankees in a deadline deal for Frankie Montas and has been given the chance to join the big league rotation. Sears has impressed in limited duty with his new club, with a 2.63 ERA in five starts. Backing up Sears is a pretty bad bullpen. AJ Puk is the most promising piece, armed with an upper 90s fastball from the left side, and has pitched to a 2.43 ERA in 55.2 innings. Closer Dany Jimenez has been okay, with a 3.41 ERA and 11 saves in 34.1 innings.
Oakland owns the lowest batting average by any team in the league. Seth Brown leads the team with 21 home runs, possibly putting himself into the future plans of this club. Sean Murphy leads the team with 30 doubles and a .252 batting average, adding 18 home runs and his usual stellar defense. Ramon Laureano has belted 12 home runs and leads the team with 10 stolen bases. Chad Pinder is the fourth Athletic with double-digit home runs, sending 11 balls over the fence.
Final White Sox-Athletics Prediction & Pick
Decent pitching matchup, but Cease will be too much for Oakland.
Final White Sox-Athletics Prediction & Pick: Chicago -1.5 (-120), under 7 (-105)
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