The Boston Red Sox look to come out on top for the second time in a row against the host Chicago White Sox in an American League tilt Wednesday night. Boston piled up 19 base hits and got on the scoreboard in each of the first five innings en route to a decisive 16-3 victory against the White Sox on Tuesday, which was the opener of this three-game series.
The Red Sox (20-22) have shown signs of life recently, putting a less-than-ideal start to the season in the rearview mirror. Boston has ripped six consecutive wins by an average of over five runs.
Chicago (21-21) currently sits in second-place in the relatively weak AL Central. They’ve gone an even .500 in their last 10 outings. The White Sox swept Boston in three games when these teams met earlier this month.
On the mound and in the batter’s box, Chicago is a middle-of-the-road crew, statistically. The White Sox have put up a .236 average at the dish thus far, with shortstop Tim Anderson putting in a lot of the work. Anderson is hitting .365, which is the third-best mark in the league. He’s been a mainstay on the basepaths, boasting a .405 on-base percentage.
Red Sox at White Sox Odds
MLB odds have the White Sox favored to get some payback for how the initial game of this bill went. Chicago is -1.5 on the run line at -174, while the Red Sox are -162 to cover the spread.
On the moneyline, the White Sox are -174 and Boston a +146 underdog. The total has been set at 7.5 runs, with the over being -114 and the under -106 at the time of this writing.
MLB betting trends show that the Red Sox are on a roll hitting-wise lately. As a whole, the squad has a .245 average, which is the third-highest in the AL behind Cleveland and the Los Angeles Angels.
Designated hitter J.D. Martinez, third baseman Rafael Devers, catcher Christian Vazquez, second baseman Trevor Story, and left fielder Alex Verdugo are all hitting .278 or above in the last week. Story is having his best stretch with his new club, having hammered five homers and driven in 13 runs during that time.
Matchup Information
Red Sox at White Sox Betting Preview
Rich Hill will serve as the visitors’ starter here, coming in with a 3.90 ERA in 17 innings of work. The Red Sox have come out on the right side of the hardened veteran southpaw’s last two starts, but the last wasn’t particularly pretty.
Against Seattle, Hill was yanked after only two frames on the hill. It took him 56 pitches to get six outs, and he allowed six hits and four earned runs. Even with red-hot bats there to give him run support, he’ll prefer to get back on the right track in this outing.
Seventh-year righty Lucas Giolito will pitch for the White Sox. He has a 2.84 ERA and sports a 2-1 record. He recently went head-to-head against another talented hitting team in Cleveland and earned a W by going seven innings and allowing a single run on six knocks. Last time out, he allowed Kansas City two runs in what wound up being a no-decision.
Red Sox at White Sox Betting Predictions
Being that Giolito has shown to be able to do enough to best a solid lineup, this is one of the more difficult MLB picks today. Digging further into that, Hill’s best days are arguably behind him and the White Sox’ Anderson brings an air of confidence to Chicago’s crew.
Still, Boston’s big hitters have been impressive as of late. Evidenced by Tuesday, this series won’t be much like the last between these AL groups. The Red Sox probably won’t match their season-high 16 runs (it would be something if they did), but they’ll still outlast the South Siders.
Choose Boston to win outright if you want to make some money betting on baseball.
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