The Chicago White Sox (6-25) travel to face off against the St. Louis Cardinals (14-17) on Friday, May 3rd. This game will be played at Busch Stadium in St. Louis and televised on NBCS. Both the White Sox and Cardinals are looking to bounce back from losses in their previous games. First pitch is set for 8:15 ET.
White Sox vs Cardinals
Heading into their last game vs. the Twins, the White Sox closed out the series with a 10-5 loss. Chicago was the +186 underdog at home. Things started off well for the White Sox, as they got on the board with two runs in the 1st inning but gave up the lead right away as the Twins scored three times in the top of the first.
Chris Flexen had a rough outing, giving up four earned runs on four hits and issuing two walks. He also hit a batter and took the loss. The White Sox’s offense scored their other three runs in the 3rd inning but didn’t have another hit after that. Tommy Pham and Korey Lee each had a homer, going 2/4.
With a record of 6-25, the White Sox are 14 games out of the AL Central lead. So far, they have really struggled against other AL Central teams, going 2-18. Chicago has dropped three straight games, and this losing streak spans across their series vs. the Twins and their series opener vs. the Cardinals.
At home, the White Sox are just 5-12 and have gone only 1-13 on the road. As the road underdog, Chicago is 1-13 this year, and they are also just 2-11 in day games. So far, they have an overall series record of 1-8-1.
Chicago has been a poor bet on the run line overall this season, going 14-17, including a 4-10 mark on the road. They have been especially bad against the run line in their last two road games, and have an average run margin of -3.5 on the road this season.
Chicago White Sox games have been trending towards the over, with a combined run average of 8.5 runs per game. Their over/under record is 15-15, and their games have had an average over/under line of 8 runs. When the line has been set at 7.5 runs, their games have gone over 3 times and under 5 times. The over has hit in their last two games, with the combined runs in those games being 15 and 11, respectively.
Brad Keller Gets The Start For The White Sox
Brad Keller is getting the start for the White Sox on the road against the Cardinals. Keller is coming off of a short relief outing against the Twins, where he went 1 2/3 innings and struck out 1 batter.
White Sox Offense Breakdown
As a team, the White Sox are averaging just 2.9 runs per game, which is the worst mark in the league. This is due in large part to their poor team on-base percentage of just .276. So far, they have been a little better at home, averaging 3.1 runs per game. As a team, they are batting just .212.
Over his last nine games, Eloy Jiménez has gone 11/37 with two homers and six RBIs, while Andrew Benintendi has also homered three times in this stretch while batting .294. For the season, Benintendi is batting just .200, and Jiménez is at .239. Both players are tied for the team lead with three homers.
The Cardinals will be looking to get back on track after closing out their series vs. the Tigers with a 4-1 loss. This was especially tough, as they held a lead going into the 4th inning before the Tigers scored three runs in the bottom of the 4th. St. Louis was the -116 favorite on the money line going into the game.
Miles Mikolas put together a good start for the Cardinals, going six innings and giving up just three earned runs, and striking out four. However, he took the loss, as the Cardinals’ offense scored only one run. Willson Contreras had the team’s only RBI, going 1/4 with a homer.
St. Louis will host the White Sox today with an overall record of 14-17, which has them 4th in the NL Central. So far, they have gone 0-3 in divisional games, and they are 5.5 games behind the Brewers for the division lead. The Cardinals lost the final two games of their series vs. the Tigers.
At home, the Cardinals are 5-7 this year compared to 9-10 on the road. As the favorite, St. Louis has gone 7-7 this year and 4-5 as the favorite at home. Their overall series record is 5-5, and they will be looking to get back to .500 with a win today. St. Louis will also be looking to get back to an even record, as they are currently 14-17 overall.
So far this season, the Cardinals have been a solid bet against the run line, going 17-14. They have been especially good as the underdog, going 11-6 against the run line. Their average run differential in games they have covered the run line is +2.4 runs per game, while their average run differential in games they haven’t covered is -3.8 runs per game.
St. Louis has played 22 games this season with over/under lines higher than 7.5 runs, and their average combined run total is 8.0. Their over/under record for the season is 11-19, and they are 1-7 in games with a line of 7.5 runs. Their games have averaged 8 runs per game, and their over/under record when the line is set at 7.5 runs is 1-7.
Sonny Gray Gets The Start For The Cardinals
Sonny Gray has gotten off to a strong start to the season, and he’ll be making his second start at home today against the White Sox. In his first home start, he struck out 12 Brewers in a losing effort, but he did pick up a win in his last outing, going 6 innings and giving up just 1 earned run against the Mets.
Cardinals Offense Breakdown
So far this season, the Cardinals are averaging just 3.5 runs per game, which is 27th in the league. This is due in large part to their lack of power, as they are 18th in home runs and have the league’s worst team slugging percentage. As a team, they are batting just .220, which is 19th in the league.
Willson Contreras has been a bright spot for the Cardinals, as he is batting .258 with five home runs. However, he has gone just 4/25 in his last six games. Brendan Donovan is batting just .222 but does have three homers and is 13th in the league with 16 RBIs. Over his last six games, Alec Burleson is 6/19 with two homers and eight RBIs.
White Sox vs Cardinals Prediction
For this White Sox vs. Cardinals matchup, we actually like the over/under line more than the money line. We see the Cardinals coming away with a 5-4 win, but with a payout of -264, the payout just isn’t worth it.
Instead, we like the over at 7.5 runs. Our projections have this one finishing with a combined nine runs, giving us some nice cushion on the over/under line. You can get the over at -111, and we see this as a great value bet.
All odds are courtesy of Action247 Sportsbook. Good luck!!
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Last updated:May 3, 2024 Cardinals, White Sox