An AL Central showdown will surely entertain when the Chicago White Sox travel to Kansas City to take on the Royals. Join us for our MLB odds series, where our White Sox-Royals prediction and pick will be revealed.
Entering the weekend with one of the worst records in baseball at 1-6, Chicago is in the midst of a lengthy rebuild that may take a couple of seasons before they are competitive again. Beginning with last year's trade deadline, the White Six ended up losing 101 games in 2023 and are more than likely headed to a similar amount in the loss column for the second year in a row. Nevertheless, anything can happen in a divisional showdown. Chicago will call upon right-hander Chris Flexen who is 0-1 with an 8.31 ERA.
Meanwhile, the Royals took advantage of every single White Sox miscue as Kansas City saw ten runners cross home plate en route to a 10-1 beatdown on Thursday. Thus far, KC is 3-4 and have been victorious in two of their last three games. Overall, the Royals are looking to take that next step toward relevancy and are more than motivated to get there this season. In line for the start on Saturday will be savvy veteran Michael Wacha. In his first start of the season, the 32-year-old did happen to throw five innings, but he surrendered three earned runs on a trio of hits in a loss to the Baltimore Orioles.
Here are the MLB Odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
MLB Odds: White Sox-Royals Odds
Chicago White Sox: +1.5 (-134)
Moneyline: +150
Kansas City Royals: -1.5 (+112)
Moneyline: -178
Over: 9 (-104)
Under: 9 (-118)
How to Watch White Sox vs. Royals
Time: 7:00 ET/4:00 PT
TV: MLB.TV
Stream: fuboTV (Click for free trial)
Why The White Sox Will Cover The Spread/Win
With only one win under their belts to begin the new year, there is no doubt that the White Sox need to reevaluate how they are playing in every facet of the game.
Indeed, it all begins with finding a way to get third-baseman Yoan Moncada going at the plate. When stepping into the batter's box this season, Moncada does happen to be slashing a healthy .273 batting average in 22 at-bats, but he has yet to hit a home run and record an RBI. As someone who is considered to be one of Chicago's top hitters, he could very well be due for a breakout performance at the dish on Saturday.
Encouragingly enough, Chicago is also a steady 4-2 against the spread despite their lackluster record up to this point. Don't be surprised if Chicago makes this a game til the bitter end.
Clearly, not a whole lot went right for the White Sox in game one of this series, so expect Chicago to be playing with an added focus that didn't exist during their first contest versus Kansas City.
Why The Royals Will Cover The Spread/Win
There's plenty of reasons why Royals fans should be excited about the near future of this ball club, but a young Kansas City squad still needs to show that they have grown in their maturity for the 2024 season. All in all, there are royal aspirations in KC this summer.
For starters, the Royals will look to take advantage of a rebuilding White Sox squad and earn their first series win of the season by stringing together some patient at-bats. Clearly, chasing out of the zone and pressing with the sticks won't be a formula for success. Instead, making the White Sox work for every single pitch thrown will be critical. In their 10-1 win that saw the Royals explode for eight runs in the eighth inning, there were very few at-bats in which the Royals did not work the count and make Chicago sweat from the pitching mound.
All together, be on the lookout for future star Bobby Witt Jr to continue swinging a hot bat as he is raking .429 to go along with a pair of home runs next to his name. Undoubtedly, Witt is a handful and presents the biggest threat to the White Sox pitching arms this weekend.
Most importantly, can veteran Michael Wacha dial in some impressive pitching to keep the Royals off the scoreboard? With plenty of experience and mileage under that right-wing, Wacha has happened to pitch well against the White Sox in his career. Not to mention, but metrics suggest that Chicago owns one of the worst lineups in all of baseball which should only work to Wacha's advantage in this one.
Final White Sox-Royals Prediction & Pick
While the White Sox will most likely not play as poorly, the Royals are simply the better team. While anything can happen, take the Royals to cover and ultimately win in front of their home crowd at Kauffman Stadium.
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Final White Sox-Royals Prediction & Pick: Royals -1.5 (+112)
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