Just one year after winning 16 games and finishing second in the American League Rookie of the Year voting, Matt Shoemaker has lost his spot in the Los Angeles Angels' rotation. Thursday is the first time there's going to be a gaping hole for Mike Scioscia to fill in the rotation after Shoemaker was optioned, which will make life really difficult on the 60-57 side going into this last clash against the 55-60 Chicago White Sox.
PITCHING MATCHUP
Nicholas Tropeano is very likely to be the man called up to replace Shoemaker in the rotation, but that doesn't do much for us.
In Triple-A this year, Tropeano is just 3-5 in his 15 starts along with an ERA of 4.81. He is averaging less than six innings per start in the minors, and though his K/9 is a rock solid 9.84, control issues at the minor league level almost always are magnified in the big leagues. This year, the righty has a 3.72 BB/9 ratio, far too high for a man expected to make a successful jump up to the majors.
This is going to be Tropeano's seventh big league start in his career, and thus far, he has a 2-4 record and a 4.01 ERA.
The bottom line? Find another pitcher to trust in live betting on Thursday night.
The White Sox haven't set their rotation for this series yet, but all signs are pointing towards Jose Quintana pitching. That might really pay off in this game, knowing that the Angels are terrible batting against lefties this year at .231 with just 3.50 runs per nine innings along the way.
Quintana might be just 6-10, but he has proven to be a trustable commodity for live bettors. The ability is always going to be there for this southpaw to go the distance, as he did back on July 24 against the Indians in a seven-hit shutout, but even if he doesn't get that far, you know that the Pale Hose are going to be in it with a shout when his day is done.
Quintana hasn't allowed more than four runs in a game since May 24, and he hasn't allowed more than three runs in any inning in that stretch either.
ADVANCED STATS
The Chicago offense is still really concerning. Yes, the club has played better since the All-Star break, but you can't get away from some of these nasty stats.
The White Sox have the worst total WAR for hitters in the league at just 2.2, a whopping 3.4 worse than the No. 29 Phillies. Their offensive rating as a team per FanGraphs is -75.0. They bat .249 as a team and have shown no power with a .133 ISO, and they are striking out at a rate of 20.7 percent.
All of that might be tough to swallow in live betting, but the case could be made that the White Sox bats are the lesser of the two evils in this one.
TALKING BULLPENS
The Angels have a really tired bullpen right now. Cory Rasmus is now on the DL with a strained forearm, which has caused Anaheim to go deep into its minor-league system, calling up Cam Bedrosian and Mike Morin.
That bullpen, one which already ranks just No. 18 in the majors in WAR at 1.6, has been taxed to the tune of 39.1 innings over the course of its last nine games. We know that Tropeano isn't going to go very deep in this one, which will setup the pen to be overused once again, and if that proves to be the case on Tuesday and Wednesday as well, be sure to fade away on this unit in live betting.
The baseball betting odds for this game will first be available at BookMaker Sportsbook. BookMaker is going to have multiple betting options available for this baseball matchup. Live wagering during commercials offers and adjusted moneyline, individual inning run totals and next hitter results. Log in, and start gambling during the game now!
BookMaker offers play-by-play betting odds for live sporting events every day! The user-friendly wagering interface on your smartphone provides an easy way to place bets on the go. Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute, so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker Sportsbook! The game between the Los Angeles Angels and the Chicago White Sox will start at 10:05 p.m. ET on Thursday, August 20, 2015 at Angel Stadium in Anaheim, CA. The matchup will be televised locally on WGN and FOX Sports West.
