Sox Look To Split Series
The Chicago White Sox will still be alone atop the AL Central standings when they leave Minnesota.
The
White Sox, though, look to leave town with the lead they had when they
came to Minnesota when they try to earn a split of a four-game set with
the Twins on Thursday night.
Oddsmakers from SBG Global
have made Minnesota -140 money line favorites (MLB Odds) for tonight’s game, the over/under has
been set at 8 total runs (Matchup). Current public betting information shows that 32% of bets for this game have been placed on Minnesota -140 (View MLB Bet Percentages).
Chicago (60-46) snapped a three-game
losing streak with an 8-3 win over the Twins on Wednesday after
dropping the first two contests of this set. The White Sox avoided
dropping out of first place and head into this finale with a 1 1/2-game
lead over Minnesota (59-48).
"We needed to win this game badly for the enthusiasm of the ballclub," Chicago manager Ozzie Guillen said.
Carlos
Quentin hit his AL-leading 28th homer and drove in four runs, while
Alexei Ramirez added a three-run shot for the White Sox, who scored
nine total runs during their three-game skid.
After going 0-for-4
in Monday’s opener, Quentin is 4-for-10 with five RBIs in his last two
contests and batting .324 with nine home runs, plus 21 RBIs over his
last 17 games.
"He carried this ballclub for a long time,"
Guillen said of Quentin. "He’s been doing the same stuff day in day
out, and he continues to do it."
After a solid effort from Gavin
Floyd helped Chicago halt a five-game losing streak at the Metrodome,
the White Sox turn to John Danks (8-4, 3.18 ERA), who is looking for
his sixth straight win overall in his fourth start against Minnesota
this season.
Danks allowed four earned runs and eight hits in six
innings, but was victorious in Chicago’s 7-6 win at Detroit on
Saturday. He is 5-0 with a 3.33 ERA over his last 11 starts since
losing to the Los Angeles Angels on May 24.
"Felt I had good stuff," Danks said Saturday. "Aside from a few pitches here or there, I thought I made good pitches."
The
left-hander is 2-3 with 7.06 ERA in six career starts versus the Twins
and 1-1 with an 8.78 ERA in three outings in 2008 – all at home.
Jason
Kubel and rookie Denard Span each had two hits, while Justin Morneau
had an RBI double Wednesday for Minnesota, which had its four-game
winning snapped while losing for just the sixth time in its last 26
games at home.
Morneau, who’s 4-for-10 with seven RBIs in the
series, is 6-for-13 with two doubles, two homers and five RBIs lifetime
versus Danks. Fellow Minnesota All-Star Joe Mauer – 0-for-4 on
Wednesday – is 6-for-10 against Danks.
Scott Baker (7-3, 2.38),
who is 5-1 with a 3.00 ERA over his last seven starts, takes the mound
for Minnesota. He allowed three runs and five hits in five-plus innings
to win 11-4 at Cleveland on Saturday.
"It was one of those nights
when you know what you’re doing wrong, but you can’t make the
corrections," Baker said. "I was trying to guide the ball. It was a
constant battle. It worked out, but I would have liked to do better."
The
right-hander is 2-2 with an 8.44 ERA in six starts versus the White Sox
and allowed three runs in five innings of 12-5 win at Chicago on April
9.
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