Sunday is the end of a quick Crosstown Classic between the Cubs and White Sox from Guaranteed Right Field.
Unfortunately for White Sox fans, they aren’t in the same position as the Cubs are. The Cubs are currently 47-42 coming into this game, half a game ahead of the Brewers for first place in the NL Central. The White Sox are 41-44 coming into this game. While that might seem like a disappointment, they’re actually doing better than anticipated. Their over/under win total for 2019 was only 74.5. Young stars like Yoan Moncada and Lucas Giolito have carried this team the first half of the season.
Probable Pitchers
For the Cubs, Kyle Hendricks will get the ball for his 16th start of the season. So far in 2019, Hendricks is 7-6 with a 3.45 ERA. His first start off the injured list on July 2 was cut short by a rain delay, and Hendricks only went three innings. It was a solid outing regardless, as he did give up two runs but struck out four. Short outings are something that the Cubs are not used to getting from Hendricks. He has gone at least six innings in eight of his starts this season, including four of those starts going eight innings or deeper.
For the White Sox, Ivan Nova will take the hill for his 18th start of the year. Nova is having one of the toughest seasons of his career at 3-7 with an ERA of 5.92. Nova has been incredibly boom-or-bust this season in almost every start. In six of his 17 starts, Nova has been super solid and only given up one run. However, in eight of his 17 starts, he has given up four runs or more, and half of those were six or more runs. Nova has been terrible in particular at home for the White Sox this season. Nova is 0-4 with an ERA of 8.31 and has taken a loss in three of his last five home starts.
Batters To Watch
One of the reasons the Cubs have been so good this season is due to Javier Baez. The 2019 All-Star has been having another terrific season for Chicago. Coming into this series, Baez was batting .288 with 22 home runs and 60 runs batted in. The former top-10 pick is going into this weekend and the All-Star break red hot, with hits in 11 of his last 12 games. The one game he didn’t have a hit in, he only had two at-bats off the bench.
Welcome to the Yoan Moncada breakout year, everyone. One of, if not the main piece in the Chris Sale has exploded this season. He’s batting .304 with 16 home runs and 47 runs batted in this year. Like Baez, he also has hits in 11 of his last 12 games.
The Pick
Nova has been one of the worst pitchers in the league at home this season, so betting against him is not hard at all. On top of that, the Cubs are easily the better team. Take the North Siders (Cubs).
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