White Sox vs. Athletics MLB Picks: Chicago Turns to Ace in Must-Win Spot
In the final month of the regular season, the Chicago White Sox are finally picking up the pace as their offense has come alive in the chase for the final wild-card spot. They now open a must-win series against the Oakland Athletics. Here are our top White Sox-Athletics picks.
Coming off a 9-6 win over the Seattle Mariners on Wednesday, the White Sox hope to keep the ball rolling in the opening game of their four-game series with the Athletics. Chicago went 6-2 over its last eight games and has performed well against teams with a losing record. The White Sox are 46-16 in their last 62 games against teams with a winning percentage below .400.
The White Sox will have ace Dylan Cease on the mound against an Oakland offense that hasn’t been able to generate much production this year. The Athletics are 29th in MLB with 3.42 runs per game. In 2022, batters are averaging .185 against Cease this season, which doesn’t bode well for the A’s who have a team batting average of .216.
Here are my MLB picks and predictions for Thursday night’s game between the White Sox and Athletics (odds via FanDuel Sportsbook, BetMGM, and DraftKings Sportsbook; pick confidence based on a 1-to-5 scale).
White Sox vs. Athletics Game Info
Date/Time: Thursday Sept. 8, 9:40 p.m. ET
Location: Oakland Coliseum, Oakland, CA
Weather: 79 degrees, 0% chance of precipitation, 11-mph wind
White Sox vs. Athletics Odds Analysis
The White Sox are the moneyline favorites, ranging from -188 via FanDuel to -200 via BetMGM. Chicago is receiving strong support from bettors with 97% of the cash and 74% of tickets.
The total is set at 7 at all of our top-rated sportsbooks. The Over has drawn 68% of bets but for just 51% of the handle.
White Sox vs. Athletics Projected Pitchers
RHP Dylan Cease (13-6, 2.13 ERA, 1.08 WHIP) vs. LHP JP Sears (5-1, 2.37 ERA, 1.11 WHIP)
As mentioned, batters are averaging just .185 against Cease this season. He’s allowed an average of .81 home runs per nine innings pitched and has a strikeout rate of 31.4%, which also doesn’t bode well for the Athletics. Cease’s only glaring issue this year has been walks. He averages 3.7 walks per nine innings.
Sears has been a bright spot for Oakland this season. He has a 2.45 ERA across his last 22 innings pitched, with two home runs allowed in that span.
White Sox vs. Athletics Picks
White Sox vs. Athletics ML Pick
White Sox (-188) ★★★★
Since White Sox skipper Tony La Russa has been sidelined, his club has looked like a much different team. With so many guys who have the potential to do damage in this lineup, finally, they’re starting to live up to standards. Just last night, Eloy Jimenez drove in three runs with a home run and a double.
Don’t let the White Sox’s overall offensive stats fool you: they’ve been red-hot and this is a must-win series as we enter the home stretch of the regular season. They may be 7.5 games out of the final AL wild-card spot, but they’re the far better team in this matchup and riding a winning stretch. The last time the White Sox faced the Athletics, they took the series 2-1, and especially with Cease starting on the mound Thursday, they should be able to silence an already quiet Oakland offense.
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White Sox vs. Athletics O/U Pick
Under 7 (-105) ★★★
These are two good starters on the mound in Cease and Sears. If both of them can produce quality starts, it should be a low-scoring matchup.
Add onto the fact the White Sox bullpen has a save percentage of 68.3% and blown only 19 of 60 saves this season, it feels quite unlikely the Athletics are going to have a late-game offensive explosion with an already weaker lineup.
White Sox vs. Athletics Prop Pick
A strikeout rate of 31% in combination with an Athletics’ lineup that’s struck out quite a bit this season (1,142 times to be exact), taking Cease Over 8.5 strikeouts at +115 seems like a fair chance.
The last time he struck out at least nine batters in a game was against the Cleveland Guardians on July 12, but since then he’s had five games in nine starts with at least seven strikeouts.
Where to Bet on White Sox-Athletics Picks
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White Sox-Athletics picks made on 9/8/2022 at 11:01 a.m. ET.
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