First, the Chicago White Sox will be playing against the Los Angeles Angels for Game 3 of their series. Jaime Barria is expected to start for the Halos, while Lance Lynn is probable for the pale hose.
Meanwhile, over at Wrigley Field, the Chicago Cubs face the Tampa Bay Rays for Game 3 of their series. Zac Eflin will be starting for the Rays, while the Cubs will be countering with Justin Steele. It’s sure to be an exciting day of baseball in the Windy City!
Los Angeles Angels vs Chicago White Sox
The Angels are a +115 underdog with a nine-run total when they meet the White Sox at 2:10 pm.
Barria has been performing exceptionally well as both a starter and a relief pitcher, having not allowed an earned run in his last 15.2 innings pitched. However, he has a tendency to give up long balls and his ERA is almost doubled by his xFIP.
Lynn (4-5, 5.83) has been a dependable innings-eater for Chicago, but he has allowed 15 earned runs in the last 35.2 innings. Although Lynn allows almost two home runs per nine innings, his 3.89 xFIP indicates that there may be some positive regression for the seasoned right-hander.
Phil’s Best Bet: Los Angeles Angels +115 FanDuel
The Angels offense mashes righties and Lynn has allowed 15 earned runs over his past three starts. The White Sox hurler has also allowed five home runs and 10 walks over 29 innings at Guaranteed Rate Field.
That isn’t going to get the job done on Wednesday and the Angels offense should be able to rough-up Lynn and get enough runs to win this contest. Barria is spinning a 0.90 WHIP and striking out nine per nine on the road and should see an uptick in strikeouts against the strike-out-prone White Sox.
Finally, the Angels are 17-2 as the underdog and I like the Angels ML today.
Tampa Bay Rays vs Chicago Cubs
The Rays have been benefiting from the exceptional performance of Eflin (7-1, 3.17) this season.
Despite giving up a little over one home run per nine innings, Eflin has only allowed a dozen earned runs in his last 33 innings pitched. His impressive 3.29 xFIP suggests that Eflin is indeed as good a pitcher as his stats indicate.
Meanwhile, Steele (6-2, 2.77) has been outstanding for the Cubs, having given up just 14 earned runs in his last 28.2 innings pitched.
However, he’s coming off a horrible home start and his xFIP is a full run higher than his ERA, which could point to some regression for the Cubs’ ace.
Phil’s Best Bet: Cubs F5 +100
We’re looking for a bounce-back outing from Steele and my best bet is Cubs F5 +100 (EV). Eflin is not the same pitcher on the road as at home and allows nearly three bombs per nine. The Cubs offense has blasted 46 bombs against right-handers and this collection of Cubs have smashed four bombs with eight RBI over 64 at-bats.
Steele hasn’t allowed a HR at home this season and is coming off a awful outing at home against the Cincinnati Reds but the Rays are an average American League offense against southpaws and the Cubs should be winning after five innings.
