One massive tell is going to be in play for bettors on Sunday when the 51-55 Chicago White Sox take on the 63-43 Kansas City Royals.
ODDS ANALYSIS
The White Sox have been playing good ball of late, but we wonder if they’ve hit their ceiling. They're back to within a few games of .500, but they don't feel like they're ever going to make up that 5.01 units they’ve cost bettors.
The Royals come into this weekend series at +18.64 units, largely thanks to their 34-18 home record.
PITCHING MATCHUP
Jose Quintana is clearly the better of these two lefties on the mound on Sunday. He has pitched incredibly well of late to lower his ERA down to 3.50.
You know that Quintana isn't going to put many runners on via balls with just 29 walks on the season, and he’s consistently walked around one batter every four innings in his career.
Danny Duffy actually has a better record at 5-5 than Quintana has at 6-9. But don't confuse these two. Duffy walks far too many batters and strikeouts out hardly any. A 5.46 K/9 is miniscule by starter standards, while a BB/9 of 3.74 would only be acceptable of power pitchers.
QUOTE TO NOTE
"We're not the bad boys of baseball. We just play baseball. We didn't do anything that was wrong. We just played the game." – Royals manager Ned Yost when asked if his KC side was one of the dirtiest in the game
SITUATIONAL BETTING
Considering the fact that no one who has pitched more than 25 innings for the White Sox outside of David Robertson has better than a 3.16 ERA this year, the closer had better not be struggling.
Robertson might have gotten back on track by throwing two perfect frames with four strikeouts against the Rays on Wednesday, but prior to that, he had allowed a run in three straight outings.
PROP TALK
The top of the Kansas City lineup has really struggled of late. Alcides Escobar is batting just .156 in his last nine games, while Lorenzo Cain is coming off of a series with the Tigers in which he went 1-for-14.
If these men aren't getting aboard, the Royals are really going to struggle scoring runs, which will play a role in not just their props, but the props for the rest of the men in this lineup as well.
ANALYSIS AND PREDICTION
Here's the bottom line in this game. The Royals are hitting .271 against lefties this year with a .388 slugging percentage. They're averaging over four runs per nine innings against southpaws, too.
The White Sox meanwhile, bat .230 against lefties, and their 13 home runs against southpaws are the fewest in baseball. They're slugging just .342 with a .280 OBP.
Clearly, that isn't going to cut it for the Sox. There's a reason that Duffy has gotten the better of Chicago twice in three outings this year, and that's why we think KC will be a runaway winner on Sunday in the series finale.
Kansas City 7, Chicago 3
The MLB lines for this Sunday contest will be first released by BookMaker Sportsbook. Since this game can be seen by anyone with a TV, BookMaker will have a multitude of wagering options available for it. Outside of the normal lines, you can gamble on real-time moneylines, player props and inning totals. Live betting is open during every commercial break!
Access live betting lines from your mobile device at BookMaker Sportsbook! You can wager on sporting events as they unfold on television with BookMaker's live betting platform. Real-time spreads, totals, props and moneyline odds are all available by clicking here, so start betting with BookMaker today! The ballgame pitting the Chicago White Sox versus the Kansas City Royals will commence at 2:10 p.m. ET on Sunday, August 9, 2015 at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, MO. The matchup will be televised live on WGN.
