Los Angeles Angels at Chicago White Sox Betting Preview
Wednesday will feature an American League battle of west versus central as the Los Angeles Angels (70-74) take on the Chicago White Sox (83-61). The White Sox will host this one at Guaranteed Rate Field, with the first pitch scheduled for 8:10 pm ET.
This is the second of a three-game series between the two teams. On Tuesday, the White Sox took the opener 9-3.
In the win, the White Sox had nine runs on 13 hits, three walks, and two home runs. Lucas Giolito returned from the injured list to start this one, although he only went four innings, allowing three runs.
In the loss, Jared Walsh hit his 27th home run of the season while Phil Gosselin hit his sixth. Unfortunately for the Angels, starter Packy Naughton gave up four runs in just 2.2 innings of work.
The White Sox are the favorites playing at home Wednesday. They are -196 to win while the Angels’ moneyline sits at +145. The runline features the Angels +1.5 (-141), and the over/under for total runs is 8.5.
Pitching Matchup
The Angels will turn to righty Janson Junk to take the mound Wednesday. Junk has pitched in one game this year, picking up a loss against the Rangers back on September 5. In the loss, he only allowed one run in 3.2 innings.
Chicago will counter with veteran lefty Dallas Keuchel (8-9, 5.33 ERA). It has been a rough stretch for Keuchel as of late. In his last seven starts, he is 1-5 with a 8.24 ERA.
By The Numbers
The White Sox have been one of the best teams in baseball on the offensive side. They currently rank fifth in scoring averaging 4.95 runs per game. The Angels rank 16th, averaging 4.48 runs (4.15 on the road).
Defensively, it is again the White Sox with the edge. They rank fifth in scoring defense, allowing opponents just 4.01 runs per game (3.72 at home). The Angels rank 23rd, allowing 4.98 runs per game.
Angels’ Chances Of Postseason Fading Away
While they are not mathematically eliminated, at 70-73, the chances of the Angels making the postseason are in a freefall. They currently sit 14 games back in the division and ten back for a wild card spot.
Still, the Angels would love to end on a strong note, especially as Shohei Ohtani competes for the AL MVP award. Entering play Wednesday, he is -7000 to win the award.
This season, Ohtani has been sensational on offense. He is hitting .257/.360/.605, and he leads the team in home runs (44), runs batted in (94), runs scored (91), and stolen bases (23).
White Sox Playing For Playoff Positioning
At 83-61, the White Sox currently enjoy a 12.5-game lead over the second-place Cleveland Indians in the AL Central. With the division all but wrapped up, the White Sox are hoping to improve their seeding for the playoffs as they fight for home-field advantage.
Coming into play Wednesday, they are well behind the Tampa Bay Rays (90-55) for first in the American League, but they only trail the Astros (84-60) by a single game.
Leading the way offensively for the White Sox is reigning MVP Jose Abreu. He is currently hitting .261/.349/.490, and he leads the team in home runs (29), runs batted in (107), and is second in runs scored with 80.
Take The White Sox To Win
There is no denying that White Sox starter Dallas Keuchel has been absolutely brutal as of late. In fact, if the season were to end today, it would be interesting to see if he made the postseason roster.
The problem is that the Angels are sending an unproven starter to the mound in Jansen Junk, who will be going against a much better offense this time in Chicago than his other outing against the Rangers.
This one could be a bit of a slugfest, which means give me the better scoring offense. In this case, that means taking Chicago to win.
