The New York Yankees and the Chicago White Sox meet tonight in the finale of a four-game MLB betting, of which the Yanks have taken two games.
Time: 8:10 PM
Venue: Guaranteed Rate Field, Chicago
Sportsbook odds for fans who bet on baseball:
Yankees -1½ (+130) 8 (EV) -127
White Sox +1½ (-150) 8 (-120) +117
New York
On the mound: Luis Cessa (RHP, 0-2, 6.57 ERA, 13 K) struck out eight Rangers and surrendered three runs in five frames in his previous start subbing for CC Sabathia. This will be his third start as a sub for Sab. Cessa has gone deeper with each appearance; 3 1/3 innings out of the bullpen, then four, and then five innings. He allowed the White Sox three runs – two earned – in two relief innings in his sole outing against Chicago.
At bat: Aaron Judge hit his league-leading 27th home run on Wednesday to increase his on-base streak to 30 games – the longest on-base streak for a Yankee since Derek Jeter’s 34 straight games at the end of 2102.
Miscellanea: Matt Holliday is on a forced holiday with a viral infection. The first baseman has an average exit velocity of 99.4 miles per hour between the 7th and 9th innings with a runner on, which is the highest average in the majors. Additionally, he has a .544 slugging percentage between those two innings this season. New York is also without Aaron Hicks and Starlin Castro.
Trends for fans who bet on baseball: The Bombers have won four of their six games against Chicago this season, including last night’s 12-3 blowout. On the other hand, they have covered in only one third of their last six visits to Guaranteed Rate Field. The MLB betting total has gone over in six the Yankees’ last nine games.
Chicago
On the mound: James Shields (RHP, 1-1, 4.26 ERA, 24 K) allowed the A’s six runs and several homers in three innings in his second start since returning from the disabled list on Saturday. Shields has surrendered nine runs in two stars since coming off the DL whereas he only gave up one run in each of his first three appearances prior to his injury. However, he has been struggling since last season, when he surrendered the most home runs in the MLB (40). Shields has 11 wins and 16 losses in 32 outings against the Yankees with a 4.12 ERA, making the Bombers his second most frequent for as well as the team he has most lost to. The ChiSox are depending on Shields for a quality start, of which they have the fewest in the AL (27).
Trends for fans who bet on baseball: The White Sox have dropped 17 of their last 24 encounters with the Baby Bombers, including two of the first three of this series. The MLB betting total has gone over in 70% of Chicago’s last 10 games versus the Yanks, and over in seven of their last nine times hosting New York.