Inside the Chalk

The 80-67 Boston Red Sox had a well-deserved day off yesterday and will be recharged when they open a 3-game set tonight with the 65-82 Kansas City Royals at Fenway. The Red Sox lost their last two to the bottom feeding Los Angeles Angels, but they were tapped and get a pass after playing 14 games in 13 days. Their ace Sonny Gray is expected to be called upon to throw strikes and that is what he does. Gray leads the majors in wins with 17, has only 4 losses, owns an ERA of just 2.69, and a 1.16 WHIP. He last face the Royals on May 18th and delivered, allowing only 1 run on 5 hits, striking out 9, and Boston went on to a 3-1 victory. Seth Lugo is expected to get the start for KC and Boston should be able to put up some runs against the right-hander. Lugo is upside down at 6-8, has an elevated 5.04 ERA, and a 1.44 WHIP. The Red Sox swept the Royals in a 3-game set back in May in Kansas City and could easily do the same in this series.
TONIGHT’S PICK: BOSTON RED SOX

The Pittsburgh Pirates will go for a series sweep of the Chicago White Sox tonight on the south side but not so fast. Chicago still has one of the best home records in baseball at 43-30 and is expected to have Hagen Smith on the bump. The southpaw will be making his first major league start and he has earned it. Out of the pen this year Smith has been lights out with a record of 3-1, a barely visible ERA at 0.56, and a 0.94 WHIP. In his last turn on Sunday against the Minnesota Twins he twirled three strong innings allowing no runs, no hits, while striking out four, and the White Sox went on to a 10-1 rout. Jared Jones is expected to get the nod for the Bucs and the White Sox could send him packing early. Jones does not have great numbers at 3-6 with a 4.46 ERA, a 1.23 WHIP, and the Pirates are 1-7 in his last 8 starts.
TONIGHT’S PICK: CHICAGO WHITE SOX

The 81-64 Philadelphia Phillies lost a close one last night to the 74-71 Houston Astros, 6-5, at Citizens Bank Park but tonight the outcome should be different. In Game 2 of their 3-game set Phillies ace, southpaw Cristopher Sánchez, is expected to be called upon to throw strikes and he is up for the challenge. Sánchez has 16 wins and just 5 losses with an ERA of only 2.58 and a 1.20 WHIP. Hunter Brown is expected on the hill for the Astros. He is 5-3 with a 3.31 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP. The Phillies are 5-0 in Sánchez’s last 5 starts against the weak AL West but have lost 5 straight against Houston. Trends end.
TONIGHT’S PICK: PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES

The Toronto Blue Jays fell to the Athletics last night, 6-5, in Sac but bounce back tonight in the second leg of their 3-game set. Toronto sits a game back of Cleveland for the last AL wild card spot and cannot afford to lose to the lowly A’s. José Soriano is expected to get the nod for the Jays and he will right the ship. Soriano is 11-7 with a respectable ERA of 3.52 and a 1.29 WHIP. The Athletics’ expected starter is Jack Perkins. Vladi and company should crush this guy. Perkins is 3-10 with a bloated ERA of 6.50, a 1.52 WHIP, and the Athletics are 0-7 in his last 7 home starts. Despite last night’s win, the Athletics still own the worst home record in the majors at 26-44. The Jays are the side to consider regardless of the juice.
TONIGHT’S PICK: TORONTO BLUE JAYS

The Arizona Diamondbacks hold a 1/2 game lead over the San Diego Padres for the last wild card spot in the NL with 18 games remaining in the regular season. They will open a 3-game set today with the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium, who are sitting nine games out of the last AL wild card spot; KC is not going to the post-season that is a given. Today the Royals are expected to send lefty Noah Cameron to the bump. Cameron is 9-8 with a 4.08 ERA and a 1.21 WHIP. The Diamondbacks have yet to announce a starter for today, so a bullpen game is probably the direction they are going. Kansas City has not fared well against the NL West, going 0-6 over their last 6 tries. The Snakes cannot afford to lose to bottom dwellers like the Royals if they want to see the post-season and they know it. Arizona has won two straight, three of their last four, score more runs than the Royals, give up less, and is the side to consider.
TODAY’S PICK: ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS

The best team in the majors, the 88-55 Milwaukee Brewers, will go for a series win this afternoon over the 68-74 Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park. The Brewers are expected to send lefty Kyle Harrison to the hill. Harrison will try to bounce back from his last outing where the Cubs tagged him for 9 runs on 10 hits resulting in a Chicago 17-3 romp. Despite his poor showing in his last turn, Harrison still has excellent numbers at 10-4 with a 3.45 ERA and a 1.20 WHIP. Brady Singer is expected to get the nod for the Reds and his numbers are nothing to write home about. Singer is 5-13 with a 4.83 ERA, a 1.45 WHIP, and Cincinnati is 0-11 in his last 11 starts against a team with a winning record. The Brewers are the better team on the field today, by far, and are 7-2 this year against their NL Central foe.
TODAY’S PICK: MILWAUKEE BREWERS

When Sonny Gray gets the start for the Boston Red Sox, they are always the side to consider. Gray is expected to get the nod tonight in Game 3 of their 4-game set with the Baltimore Orioles at Birdland. Gray has Cy Young numbers at 16-4 with a 2.82 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP. Baltimore is expected to counter with Chris Bassitt. He is 6-4 with a 4.97 ERA, a 1.58 WHIP, and Boston should have success against the right-hander. The Red Sox won the first two games of this series and after tonight it should be three.
TONIGHT’S PICK: BOSTON RED SOX