In the first of a four-game series between the Minnesota Twins (9-12) and the Chicago White Sox (9-12) at Target Field, Trevor May (1-1, 4.91 ERA) and Jose Quintana (1-1, 6.55 ERA) take the mound. The game gets underway at 8:10 p.m. ET on Thursday, Apr. 30 and will air on CSN-CHI and FSN-N.
May is 2-0 with a 4.91 ERA against the White Sox in his career, but is up against a less-than-stellar Chicago offense that’s hitting just .236 on the year. Joe Mauer (.300, 6 Rs, 11 RBIs) played well again yesterday, going 3 for 5 with two runs and two RBIs. In his career against the Twins, Quintana is 3-2 with a 4.40 ERA. He meets a struggling Minnesota offense that’s batting just .238. Avisail Garcia (.292, 11 Rs, 1 HR, 4 RBIs, 1 SB) has been doing well, going 2 for 3 yesterday with one run.
Minnesota is a +141 underdog in this game and the Over/Under (O/U) is seven runs. When playing as the underdog, the Twins have a 9-10 record and overall money line at +38. They have disappointing records of 7-9 as the underdog and 7-10 SU within their division. The Twins don’t give up many walks to opposing batters at Target Field, ranking fifth in the AL with only 3.0 walks allowed per home game.
Across the field, the White Sox have a nice record of 4-2 when they are favored, but are -126 overall with the money line. Against divisional foes, they are 8-9 SU and 4-2 as the favorite. They also allow just 2.7 walks per game, good for fourth in the AL.
In their previous three games this season, the White Sox have a 2-1 record. This game will feature Quintana (LHP) on the mound against the Twins, who have a 4-5 record when they take on a left-handed starter. The right-handed May will take the mound against the White Sox, who have a 6-6 record against righty starters this season.
Predictions: SU Winner – CWS, O/U – Under
Notes
When leading after 7 innings, Chicago is 2-3, while Minnesota is 1-5.
The Twins are coming into this game after allowing zero walks during their last outing. The White Sox have a 1-2 record when opponents give up that many walks.
When they are outhit, the White Sox are 1-9. The Twins have a 2-11 record when opponents outhit them.
Both falling near the bottom of the league based on total home runs this season, Minnesota ranks 28th with 11 homers and Chicago is 27th with 12.
Ranking 13th, Minnesota is in the top half of the league in hits, notching 7.80 per game. Chicago ranks in the top 10 at ninth with 8.18.
Minnesota and Chicago both rank near the bottom of the league for their on-base plus slugging percentage. Minnesota sits at 26th with an OPS of .630 and Chicago ranks 24th with an OPS of .639.
The White Sox are 3-8 when they allow at least one home run. The Twins perform similarly when they allow one or more homers with a 5-10 record.
