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It’s arguably the best starting pitching matchup of the season on Tuesday night when the two AL Cy Young favorites face off in Houston’s Justin Verlander and the White Sox’s Dylan Cease. The Astros are short favorites on the MLB odds.

How to Bet Astros at White Sox MLB Odds & TV Info

When: Tuesday, 8:10 PM ET
Where: Guaranteed Rate Field
Probable pitchers (away/home): Justin Verlander/Dylan Cease
TV: MLB Extra Innings
Stream/gameday audio: https://www.mlb.com/live-stream-games/
Opening MLB Lines: Astros -115, White Sox -105 (total 7)

Why Bet on Houston?

Over the weekend, the Astros transferred former All-Star outfielder Michael Brantley to the 60-day injured list. Brantley wound up undergoing season-ending surgery to repair a torn labrum in his right shoulder. The 35-year-old finished his 2022 campaign hitting .288/.370/.416 with five homers and 26 RBI in 64 games. He’ll be a free agent and probably not back with Houston.

Fellow outfielder Yordan Alvarez is having an MVP-caliber season, hitting .297 with 31 HR and 74 RBI with a 1.025 OPS. In the AL, he ranks first in OBP (.401), second in HR (31), OPS (1.025), SLG (.624) and runs (73) and fourth in RBI (74). Additionally, he leads the Majors in hard-hit percentage (61.2%). As of Modany, the Astros are third in the AL in runs scored with 525, rank second in homers (159), third in SLG (.425) and have struck out the second-fewest times in the AL (848). The team’s seven grand slams lead the majors.

If the season ended today, the Astros pitching staff would set franchise records in opponent average (.212), WHIP (1.10) and hits per 9.0 IP (7.02). Their ERA (3.02) is the second-lowest in club history, trailing only the 1981 club that posted a 2.66 ERA in their 110-game, strike-shortened season.

It’s ace Justin Verlander on the mound here. Verlander (15-3) allowed three runs on five hits over six innings while taking a no-decision in last Wednesday’s 10-inning loss to the Rangers. A quality start for Verlander, though he was lined up for a loss when he left the mound. Verlander struck out seven and walked one in the contest. This start snapped a string of seven consecutive outings with two or fewer runs allowed.

The 39-year-old leads the Majors in ERA (1.85), wins (15), WHIP (0.86) and opponent OPS (.523), while ranking 4th in opponent average (.190). He is 7 strikeouts away from tying Pedro Martinez (3,154) for the 13th-most strikeouts in MLB history.

Why Bet on Chicago?

Chicago’s best outfielder, Luis Robert, remained out of the lineup Monday. It was the third straight start he’s missed with a sprained left wrist. The team maintains that Robert is day-to-day and that he’s expected to avoid the injured list. The 25-year-old has slashed a robust .301/.336/.454 with 12 long balls and 11 swipes through 354 plate appearances. All-Star shortstop Tim Anderson remains on the injured list following hand surgery.

The White Sox and Houston are tied for fourth in the major leagues with 12 shutouts this season, trailing only the Mets (16), Yankees (14) and Angels (13). The 12 shutouts are tied for the third-highest total by the Sox since 1974, trailing only the 2011 (14) and 2021 (13) pitching staffs.

It’s ace right-hander Dylan Cease on the mound. Cease (12-5) allowed one earned run on three hits and two walks while striking out eight across six innings to take the loss last Thursday against the Royals. Cease took a tough-luck loss, as the only run he allowed came on a solo home run by Vinnie Pasquantino. Cease dominated the Royals lineup otherwise, racking up 19 swinging strikes across 94 total pitches. He’s now allowed one or fewer earned runs in 14 consecutive starts, an MLB record. His ERA is down to 1.96.

Cease ranks first in the major leagues in strikeouts per 9.0 IP (12.17), second in ERA (1.96) and third strikeouts (174). He is 0-3 with a 6.60 ERA (11 ER/15.0 IP), 16 strikeouts and a .250 (15-60) opponents’ average over three career starts against the Astros.

During his streak of allowing one earned or fewer in 14 straight starts, Cease is 8-3 with a 0.66 ERA (6 ER/82.0 IP), 103 strikeouts and a .172 (50-290) opponents’ average. His 0.66 ERA is the fourth-best mark in MLB (since 1913) over any 14-start stretch in the same season.

With Cease facing Verlander, it’s the matchup between starters who rank 1-2 in MLB in ERA entering a game with both clubs playing more than half of their games since Houston’s Roger Clemens (1st, 1.51) faced St. Louis’ Chris Carpenter (2nd, 2.29) on 9/3/2005 at Minute Maid Park. It’s the first such game involving the White Sox since 8/23/1958 when New York’s Whitey Ford (1st, 1.86) faced Billy Pierce (2nd, 1.64) at old Yankee Stadium.