With five weeks left in the regular season, the Chicago White Sox trail Minnesota by 4.5 games for first place in the AL Central. After Monday night’s game with the Cleveland Indians, it looks like the White Sox will have help as they make their final playoff push.
The White Sox go in to this baseball betting matchup as slight favorites at -140 on the MLB money line while the over/under is set at 9 runs.
The Chicago White Sox (70-60, 32-33 away) were awarded superstar Manny Ramirez in a waiver claim on Friday. The White Sox and the Los Angeles Dodgers (Ramirez’s former team) have been negotiating the terms of the deal and the two sides will likely reach an agreement on Monday. The 12-time All-Star is hitting .311 with eight home runs for the season, but leg injuries have limited him to 66 games.
The White Sox start a ten-game road trip by handing the ball to Mark Buehrle (12-10, 3.93 ERA). Buehrle has traditionally struggled in second halves of seasons, but he has shown no signs of letting up this year. He is 4-3 with a 3.32 ERA in eight starts since the All-Star Break.
The Cleveland Indians (53-77, 29-36 home) comes into Monday night’s game having lost six of their last nine. They have played well against Chicago this season, however, winning in 8 of the teams’ 12 contests.
Mitch Talbot (8-11, 4.44 ERA) will start for the Indians. The right-hander is 0-5 with a 5.87 ERA in his last eight starts. He may have a good chance to pick up his first win since June 27, however, as he has pitched well against Chicago this season. He has a 3-0 record with a 1.57 ERA in three starts against the White Sox.
