Houston Astros (65-55) vs Chicago White Sox (29-93)
Game Info: Saturday, August 17, 2024 at 7:10 pm (Minute Maid Park)
Hunter Brown (10-7) (3.96) vs Chris Flexen (2-11) (5.34)
Betting Odds: Houston Astros -417 / Chicago White Sox +325 --- Over/Under: 8 Click Here for the Latest Odds
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The Chicago White Sox and the Houston Astros meet Saturday in MLB action from Guaranteed Rate Field. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a Chicago White Sox vs. Houston Astros prediction.
Starting Pitching Matchup
The Chicago White Sox will start Chris Flexen here and Flexen is 2-11 with a 5.34 ERA and 84 strikeouts this season. In his last five starts against the Astros, Flexen is 1-2 with a 2.10 ERA and 17 strikeouts. Hunter Brown will get the start for the Astros here and is 10-7 with a 3.96 ERA and 139 strikeouts this season. In his career, Brown is 2-0 with a 3.09 ERA and 14 strikeouts against the White Sox.
Chicago White Sox Recap
The Chicago White Sox will try to keep the ball rolling after starting the series with a 5-4 upset win over the Astros in Friday’s opener. The win gave the White Sox a chance to win their first series in some time after falling short against the Yankees, Cubs, A’s and Twins in the month of August so far.
White Sox Trying To Find Positives Down The Stretch
Gavin Sheets has a .231 batting average and a .309 OBP along with 24 doubles and 37 RBIs while Andrew Vaughn has 14 homers and 52 RBIs and Andrew Benintendi has 13 home runs and 41 RBIs with Vaughn logging 27 doubles as well as a team-high 103 hits.
Why the Chicago White Sox will win
- The road team has won each of the Astros' last nine games.
- The Astros have lost each of their last six Saturday night games as home favorites against American League opponents.
- The Astros have failed to cover the run line in each of their last nine games at Minute Maid Park.
- The underdogs have covered the run line in each of the Astros' last six games at Minute Maid Park.
Houston Astros Recap
The Houston Astros come into this one looking to bounce back after starting the series on the wrong foot with Friday’s loss. The loss snapped Houston’s 8-game win streak and put them behind the 8-ball in terms of keeping their series win streak alive after taking out the Rays, Red Sox and Rangers over the course of the win streak.
Astros Trying To Take Down Another AL West Crown
Jose Altuve has 145 hits and a .297 batting average with 15 home runs, 50 RBIs and 22 doubles while Yordan Alvarez also has 28 homers with 65 RBIs and 28 doubles. Altuve has the Astros’ team lead with 15 stolen bases so far this season. Jeremy Pena also has 128 hits and a .279 batting average as well as 13 stolen bases of his own this season. Alex Bregman’s added 19 homers and 59 RBIs also.
Why the Houston Astros will win
- The White Sox have lost 24 of their last 25 games after playing the previous day.
- The Astros have won each of their last seven games after playing the previous day.
- The Astros have covered the run line in each of their last seven games against AL Central opponents following a loss.
- The White Sox have failed to cover the run line in eight of their last nine road games following a win.
White Sox vs. Astros Prediction
I’m on the Astros here but it’s going to be hard to find a way to get any value in this game with how big the line is. That being said, the White Sox have won just twice this entire season with Chris Flexen as the starting pitcher, and both wins came against the Tampa Bay Rays. The Houston Astros simply got caught with their pants down in Friday’s opener, but I expect a bounce back here. Hunter Brown’s been outstanding for much of the season to this point and I expect no different against a weak White Sox lineup. Give me the Astros -1.5.
Chris’s Pick Houston -1.5
AUTHOR: Chris Ruffolo
Follow Chris Ruffolo on Twitter @ruffthepickdawg