Jose Quintana (1-2, 5.28 ERA) and Kyle Lobstein (2-2, 3.91 ERA) take the hill in the last of a three-game series between the Chicago White Sox (10-14) and the Detroit Tigers (17-11) at U.S. Cellular Field. The White Sox won the last game 7-6 and Chicago leads the series 2-0. Action begins at 2:10 p.m. ET on Thursday, May. 7 and can be seen on FSN-DET and WGN.
Quintana is 4-2 with a 4.37 ERA in his appearances against the Tigers, and goes up against a quality Detroit offense which is batting .277 this season. Jose Abreu (.277, 12 Rs, 5 HRs, 16 RBIs) continued his strong play yesterday, going 2 for 5 with two runs. When pitching against the White Sox, Lobstein is 0-1 with a 2.57 ERA, 0.86 WHIP, and five strikeouts. Rajai Davis (.293, 14 Rs, 1 HR, 6 RBIs, 6 SBs) has been successful at the plate, going 2 for 4 yesterday with two runs and one RBI.
Chicago is a slim -115 favorite at home against Detroit. The matchup has an estimated Over/Under (O/U) of eight runs. The White Sox have an overall money line of -592 and a record as the favorite of 5-4. Within their division, Chicago has a notable 6-4 record as the favorite but a 10-13 SU.
In games where it is the underdog, Detroit has a 5-4 record and an overall money line of +575. They played poorly as the underdog over their last 10 games with a 1-4 record, and a 5-5 record SU. Offensively, the Tigers have really picked up the pace in division games. They have exceeded their season average of 4.4 runs per game by averaging 5.2 in those contests. The Tigers are tough outs for opponents, ranking third in the AL with 9.3 hits per game. The Tigers are an excellent base stealing team with 25 stolen bases, ranking fourth in the MLB. When it comes to issuing walks, the Tigers have the third-fewest in the AL with an average of just 2.5 walks allowed per game.
The White Sox lead the season series, 3-2. Quintana (LHP) will be on the hill against the Tigers, who have a 5-3 record against left-handed starting pitchers.
Predictions: SU Winner – DET, O/U – Under
Notes
In their last game, the Tigers lost by a margin of one run. The White Sox are 4-3 in one-run games. The Tigers have a 5-4 record in close games.
The White Sox are coming off of a hot pitching game where they recorded 11 strikeouts. The Tigers have a record of 1-4 when they are struck out that many times or more.
It looks like the White Sox have a slight leg up on the Tigers, as the White Sox have won their last two games while the Tigers have lost their last two.
When they outhit their opponents, the White Sox are 7-1. The Tigers have a 15-2 record when outhitting opponents.
Ranking 29th in runs, Chicago has earned 82 this season. Detroit ranks 10th with 125 runs.
Ranking 27th, Chicago is near the bottom of the league in walks, notching 58 this season. Detroit ranks in the top five at fifth with 98.
When the White Sox hit at least one home run, they are 6-4, well-matched with the Tigers who are 12-5 when hitting one or more homers.
