St. Louis Cardinals vs. Chicago White Sox
After wrapping up a home series with the Chicago Cubs on Sunday night, the St. Louis Cardinals head to the Windy City on Monday to begin a series with the Chicago White Sox.
After wrapping up a home series with the Chicago Cubs on Sunday night, the St. Louis Cardinals head to the Windy City on Monday to begin a series with another team in Chicago, the Chicago White Sox. At home, the White Sox are considerable favorites to win on Monday with a moneyline of -165. Meanwhile, the Cardinals have a moneyline of +140 on the road.
Despite losing two of three to the Cubs over the weekend, the Cards remain atop the NL Central. After getting swept by the Padres the previous weekend, St. Louis has just three wins in its last eight games. However, they are still six games over .500 and two games up on the Cubs.
As for the White Sox, they continue to be the leaders of the AL Central. The SouthSiders got swept by the Yankees over the weekend, ending a hot streak that saw the White Sox win 10 of 13 games. While they are still seven games over .500, Chicago’s lead atop the AL Central has shrunk to 1.5 games over Cleveland.
Just in Time
Coming off a three-game losing streak is the perfect time for ace Lance Lynn to start for the White Sox. Over his seven starts in 2021, Lynn is 4-1 with a 1.55 ERA. He’s allowed two runs or less in all but one of his starts this season and has a WHIP of 0.98 to accompany his stellar ERA.
On Monday, Lynn will be facing a St. Louis lineup that’s in the middle of a team-wide slump after scoring just six runs during their three-game series with the Cubs over the weekend. On the season, the Cardinals have gotten consistent production from several sources despite Paul Goldschmidt having an off-year. However, Tommy Edman and Edmundo Sosa are the only St. Louis hitters who have been consistent over the past week.
Beginner’s Luck
Korean lefty Kwang Hyun Kim will start for the Cardinals on Monday. Over the first six starts of his big-league career, Kim is 1-1 with a 2.73 ERA. The caveat is that Kim hasn’t been able to give the Cardinals a lot of depth this season, throwing just 26.1 innings over his six starts and lasting just 3.1 innings in his last start.
Kim will also be facing one of MLB’s best lineups on Monday, albeit a lineup that’s slumping. The White Sox scored just five runs during their three-game series with the Yankees over the weekend and have been held to four runs or less in 10 of their last 11 games. Injuries to the Chicago outfield are starting to take a toll, although Yoan Moncada and Yermin Mercedes are trying to keep the White Sox afloat.
Time for a Stopper
Taking the Cardinals in this game is tempting because the White Sox are struggling. But Lynn being on the mound should help the White Sox snap out of their slump, especially since Kim’s inability to go deep in games puts a strain on the St. Louis bullpen. Bet on the White Sox to beat the Cardinals on Monday and break their losing skid.
