Tigers vs. White Sox Pick
After a brawl on Thursday, will the Detroit Tigers come out with some fire when they take on the Chicago White Sox tonight at 8:10PM ET?
According to oddsmakers at Bovada.lv, the Tigers are favored on the road, as they are getting odds of -165 to win. Chicago is listed with a money line of +145 to win, while the over/under total has been set at 8.5 runs. Detroit has won three straight meetings with the White Sox entering this weekend.
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The pitching matchup tonight has Justin Verlander (9-8, 3.96 ERA) on the mound for the Tigers to face Miguel Gonzalez (7-10, 4.44) of the White Sox. Verlander has been pretty strong in recent weeks. He has three starts over his last five when he has allowed 1 run or less. Verlander has 159 strikeouts with 64 walks and a 1.31 WHIP. Gonzalez has had three straight starts where he allowed one run or less. Gonzalez has 71 strikeouts this season to go with 45 walks and a 1.47 WHIP.
The Tigers picked up a win on Thursday, but had three bench-clearing situations with the Yankees in the win. Detroit has still lost eight of its last 10 games. The Tigers are now 55-71 overall and 24-39 on the road. Detroit is averaging 4.81 runs per game this season while allowing 5.33 per contest. The Tigers are led by Justin Upton, who has 36 doubles, 27 home runs and 91 RBI. Nicholas Castellanos adds 23 doubles, 18 home runs and 72 RBI.
Chicago is coming off back-to-back wins over the Twins at home. The White Sox are now 50-76 overall and 28-33 at home. Chicago is putting up 4.33 runs per game while allowing 5.13 per contest. The White Sox are being led by Jose Abreu, who has 25 home runs, 34 doubles and 77 RBI. Avisail Garcia is adding 21 doubles, 13 home runs and 60 RBI.
Friday’s brawl could fire up the Tigers, or it could drive home the problems they have had. Verlander was actually caught on camera in an argument with Victor Martinez, so the team may not be bonding from this. Still, Verlander is a gamer and he is fired up, so I expect his best on the mound tonight. That should be good enough against Chicago, which doesn’t have much of a lineup. The key will be for the Tigers to get to Gonzalez, which may not be easy. However, I think they will do it.
MLB DAILY PREDICTION: DETROIT TIGERS -165