At 57-43, the New York Yankees now have the second best record in the American League. They get to test just how good they truly are this weekend as they take their $483 moneyline to Chicago to take on a White Sox team that is playing inspired ball, wrapping up a three game set on Sunday.
ODDS ANALYSIS
The White Sox are surging. After wallowing in the bottom of the AL Central standings for much of the year, Chicago has improved to 49-50 overall and have a moneyline of just -$73 after paying out for bettors over the last seven games.
The Yankees, of course, are also playing great baseball right now. They did lose on Wednesday, but have still won eight of their last 11 games.
New York has dominated the AL Central so far going 11-5 against them, but the Yanks are also 27-26 on the road.
Chicago, meanwhile, is 24-22 at home and 10-9 against the AL East.
PITCHING MATCHUP
Jeff Samardzija has been the subject of trade rumors for the last month, but given the White Sox’s improved play, he may be off the board. If he does stay on the South Side of Chicago, he will get the start on Sunday.
Samardzija looked like a bust acquisition early in the year, but he’s 4-1 with a 2.78 ERA and 0.97 WHIP over his last nine starts. Overall, he’s 8-5 with a 3.94 ERA and 1.180 WHIP. He also leads the team in innings with 148 1/3 over his 21 starts.
In his career against the Yankees, the Shark has allowed just a single run in 8 1/3 innings pitched.
Opposite of Samardzija, the Yankees will turn to Ivan Nova to pitch on Sunday.
Nova has made just six starts this year after returning from Tommy John surgery. His outings have been a bit inconsistent, but at 3-3 with a 3.38 ERA and 1.298 WHIP, he’s giving his team a chance.
His first start back was his best, holding the Phillies scoreless through six and two-thirds. Since then, he’s allowed at least two runs per game, but hasn’t allowed more than four in any outing.
QUOTE TO NOTE
While Alex Rodriguez, Mark Teixeira and Jacoby Ellsbury get all the attention on this team, one player that has been a big piece for them of late has been Didi Gregorius. After the team’s win on Monday, he spoke about his improvements this year, saying:
“I started the season slow, everybody knows that, and I’m making improvements, making adjustments and trying to get better. Keep picking all of these guys’ brains. We’ve got a lot of veteran guys here, everybody’s helping each other out and making us be a better team.”
LIVE/SITUATIONAL BETTING
Looking at the season stats, this appears to be a David versus Goliath type story on offense with the Yankees serving as Goliath.
New York ranks second in baseball in runs scored with 479, having slammed 134 home runs and hitting at a .257 clip. The Sox, on the other hand, are last in the American League in runs scored with just 364, are hitting just .238 overall and only have 77 long balls.
A look more at recent history and Chicago is a much different team. The ChiSox have scored 28 total runs in their last three games against Boston and plated 54 over the course of their seven game winning streak.
The offense is hot and much of that is because of Melky Cabrera. The 30-year old outfielders’ OPS+ is finally over 100 and he has at least two hits in each of the team’s last seven games, going 18 for 33 in that span.
In addition to the red hot Cabrera, there is plenty of talent on the team—even if the numbers are down—with Jose Abreu, Adam Eaton, Adam LaRoche and Avisail Garcia all above average players.
While everything has been rosy for the White Sox’s offense the last week, things have been rosy for the Yankee’s offense all year.
Sure, Stephen Drew is hitting just .192 as the primary second baseman and Gregorius has a .660 OPS at short, but Gregorius has been better of late and Drew has pop while also splitting time with Brendan Ryan as each provides good defense.
Plus, there is plenty of other offense to go around. Jacoby Ellsbury and Brett Gardner have a .357 and .378 OPS respectively atop the order with A-Rod, Tex and Brian McCann providing power and RBI production in the middle.
PROP TALK
Ride the Cabrera train as long as you can here. The outfielder is an established hitter and looks to finally be locked in. He has multi-hit games in seven straight, but his recent stats aren’t the only reason to look to him for another big game.
Cabrera has had a good deal of success against Nova in limited action, going 6 for 9 against him with a double, a pair of home runs and three RBIs.
ANALYSIS AND PREDICTION
The Yankees are playing great baseball right now and it’s hard to count them out, but Chicago has won seven straight, has a pitcher with a sub-3 ERA over his last nine starts on the mound and has an offense that is surging.
While Nova has been good, he’s allowed runs the last five games. Add in home field advantage and that is enough to side with the ChiSox in this one.
Chicago 5, New York 4
The MLB odds for this game will be available first at BookMaker Sportsbook. Gamble on the game between every half inning with BookMaker’s live betting feature. Along with an adjusted in-game moneyline, you can wager on what will happen in the next at-bat or how many runs will be scored in the next inning. Live betting is the most exciting way to play!
Load your betting bankroll from your smartphone with BookMaker’s new cashier feature! Depositing and withdrawing funds from your account has never been easier. BookMaker's live betting platform means you always have access to odds and lines to every sporting event. Click here and start wagering today! First pitch for the game between the New York Yankees and Chicago White Sox is scheduled for Sunday, August 2, 2015, at 2:10 p.m. ET at U.S. Cellular Field. The contest will be broadcast nationally on TBS.
