Jesse Chavez (1-3, 2.56 ERA) takes the hill for the Oakland Athletics (13-24) as they square off against John Danks (1-3, 5.12 ERA) and the Chicago White Sox (15-17) in the second of a three-game series at O.C. Coliseum. The White Sox won the last game 7-6 and Chicago leads the series 1-0. Action begins at 9:05 p.m. ET on Saturday, May. 16 and can be seen on WGN, CSN-CA and MLB Network.
Chavez is 2-1 with a 3.05 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, and 20 strikeouts against the White Sox. Josh Reddick (.339, 19 Rs, 6 HRs, 28 RBIs, 2 SBs) continued his strong play yesterday, going 2 for 4 with one run and three RBIs. Danks is 6-3 with a 2.38 ERA when pitching against the Athletics. He is up against a quality Oakland offense which is hitting .261 this season. Jose Abreu (.289, 17 Rs, 6 HRs, 20 RBIs) went 1 for 3 yesterday with two runs.
Oakland is a -137 favorite against Chicago and the Over/Under (O/U) for this game is sitting at seven runs. The Athletics have recorded an overall money line of -1,412 and have shown a weak performance as a favorite this season with a record of 8-15. The Athletics have no trouble scoring as they rank third in the AL in offense with 4.6 runs per game. The Athletics are one of the best in the AL in terms of hits with an impressive 9.2 per game. Crossing over to the pitching staff, the Athletics are the fifth-best team in the AL at limiting walks during home games, allowing only 2.8 walks per game to their opponents this season.
Over in the other dugout, Chicago is coming in with an overall money line of -431 and a disappointing record of 5-11 as the underdog. Offensively, the White Sox have really picked up the pace in the last 10 games. They have exceeded their season average of 3.7 runs per game by averaging 4.7 during that stretch. When it comes to issuing walks on the road, the White Sox have the fewest in the AL with only 2.1 walks allowed per game.
The White Sox have the edge in the season series, 1-0. The Athletics have a 1-6 record against left-handed starting pitchers on the year, which is what they’ll be facing when Danks takes the mound. Chavez (RHP) will be on the hill against the White Sox, who have a 12-13 record against right-handed starting pitchers.
Predictions: SU Winner – OAK, O/U – Over
Notes
Oakland is 1-7-1 SU in its last 9 games,.
Oakland is 1-4-1 SU in its last 6 games, at home.
Oakland is 1-4-1 SU in their last 6 games, when playing Chi White Sox.
Oakland 7-1-1 SU in their last 9 games when playing at home against Chi White Sox.
When leading after 7 innings, Chicago is 6-4, while Oakland is 6-15.
The Athletics are coming into this game after allowing two walks during their last outing. The White Sox have a 7-13 record when opponents give up that many walks or fewer.
It looks like the White Sox have a slight leg up on the Athletics, as the White Sox have won their last three games while the Athletics have lost their last two.
When they outhit their opponents, the Athletics are 11-7. The White Sox have an 11-2 record when outhitting opponents.
Ranking 29th, Chicago sits near the bottom of the league in runs, scoring 121 this season. Oakland ranks in the top five at fifth with 172.
Ranking 28th, Chicago is near the bottom of the league in walks, notching 81 this season. Oakland ranks in the top half at 14th with 112.
The Athletics are 10-11 in games where they hit one or more home runs. The White Sox are 8-6 when they hit at least one homer.
