The Minnesota Twins and Chicago White Sox are within striking distance in the American League Central division as the two open a weekend series at 8:10 p.m. ET on Friday. The Twins (67-62) are one game behind the Cleveland Guardians (68-61), while the White Sox (65-66) are four games back.
The Twins will send veteran Sonny Gray to the bump. He is 7-4 with a 3.04 ERA and 1.11 WHIP (Walks, Hits per Innings Pitched). The Twins are 12-8 in his starts, as is the over/under.
Davis Martin gets the ball for the White Sox. He is 2–4 with a 4.62 ERA and 1.31 WHIP. Splitting time with the bullpen, the White Sox are 1-4 in his five starts with an over/under of 2-3.
Minnesota is listed at -135 on the moneyline, while the White Sox are +115. The Twins’ run line is -1.5 (+130), while the White Sox is +1.5 (-150). The over/under is eight runs with -115 on the over and -105 on the under.
Minnesota Twins seek winning ways
The Twins had won five straight beginning last weekend and carrying over into this week. Still, they’ve won five of their last six in pursuit of the Guardians and the divisional crown. They are also three games out of the wild card but also have the Baltimore Orioles (69-61) ahead of them and outside the playoff race.
The Twins have played like a playoff team all year. Offensively they are 13th, scoring 4.52 runs per game. They are 10th in batting average (.249) and ninth in OPS (.731). The pitching staff is 13th, allowing 4.22 runs per game. They are 13th in opposing batting average (.241) and 16th in opposing OPS (.707).
The backend of the bullpen has been very good if Gray can meet them with a lead. The Twins are 27-33 on the road, and over/unders are 60-59-10.
Chicago White Sox need offense
Chicago has lost 10 of its last 14 games and now has lost their manager, Tony La Russa, to health issues that will keep him away. Some may say that’s a good thing. The clear favorites to win the division at the season’s beginning have battled injuries and never been able to put it together.
Coming off a pair of wins, the offense needs to continue driving the ball. They are 21st in scoring 4.24 runs per game despite being second in batting average at .260.
However, their OPS is 16th at .703. So while they’re putting the ball in play (sixth in strikeouts at 7.8 per game), it isn’t generating scoring opportunities.
Injuries have really hurt the pitching depth, both in the rotation and bullpen. The White Sox are 19th in allowing 4.53 runs per game, 16th with an opposing batting average of .244, and 17th with an opposing OPS of .708. They do, however, strike out hitters at a rate of 8.99 times per game, which ranks sixth.
The White Sox are 32-35 at home and 60-59-10 on over/unders.
Twins/White Sox Pick and Prediction
Data shows 67% of public bets are on the Twins moneyline. However, they are 1-4 in their last five meetings and 4-10 in their last 14 meetings in Chicago. Also, the over is 4-0-2 in the last six games in Chicago and 6-1-2 in the last nine meetings, regardless of location.
But the Twins have the better starter rolling, and as long as Gray turns in a typical performance the savvy veteran has been expected to produce, the Twins should win -135.
100% up to $3,000 Bonus
Bovada is our most recommended ONLINE CASINO and POKER ROOM for US players with excellent deposit options. Get your 100% signup bonus today.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.