It’s a matchup of two postseason teams from last season as the Tampa Bay Rays and the Chicago White Sox open a three-game weekend set at Guaranteed Rate Field.
After sweeping the Orioles, the Rays are coming off a somewhat surprising series loss to the A’s, while the White Sox just saw their four-game winning streak get snapped at the hands of the Mariners. So, which team is the best baseball bet to get back on track?
Find out with our free MLB betting picks and predictions for Rays vs. White Sox on Friday, April 15.
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Rays vs White Sox odds
This odds widget represents the best odds available for each betting market from regulated sportsbooks.
The White Sox opened this AL showdown as -140 home favorites but the Rays have seen the early money, moving the line down to -130. The total hit the board at 8.5 but there has been enough action on the Under to move the number down to 8.
Use the live odds widget above to track any future line movements right up until kickoff and be sure to check out the full MLB odds before placing your bets.
Rays vs White Sox predictions
Picks made on 4/15/2022 at 3:00 p.m. ET.
Click on each pick to jump to the full analysis.
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Rays vs White Sox game info
• Location: Guaranteed Rate Field, Chicago, IL
• Date: Friday, April 15, 2022
• First pitch: 7:10 p.m. ET
• TV: Apple TV+
Rays vs White Sox betting preview
Starting pitchers
Drew Rasmussen (0-0, 4.50 ERA): Rasmussen is another Rays’ rebuild project. After struggles in Milwaukee, he pitched to a 2.44 ERA in 20 appearances with the Rays last season and opened the year with a very Rays-like start against the Orioles, pitching four innings, allowing two runs on three hits while recording three strikeouts.
Dylan Cease (1-0, 1.80 ERA): The White Sox are banking on a big year from Cease. The right-hander pitched to a 3.91 ERA and led the AL with 12.3 strikeouts per nine innings last season. He got his 2022 off to a good start, allowing one run on two hits while striking out eight in a game against the Detroit Tigers.
Weather
Be sure to monitor the gametime conditions with our MLB weather info.
Key injuries
Rays: JT Chargois RP (Out), Nick Anderson RP (Out), Pete Fairbanks RP (Out).
White Sox: Eloy Jimenez OF (Questionable), Joe Kelly RP (Out), Yoan Moncada 3B (Out).
Find our latest MLB injury reports.
Betting trend to know
The Rays are 1-4 in their last five games when facing a right-handed starter while the White Sox are 66-28 in their last 94 games as a home favorite. Find more MLB betting trends for Rays vs. White Sox.
Rays vs White Sox picks and predictions
Our side and total predictions are based upon our analysis of the line and total in this game. Our best bet is our favorite pick across all markets.
Moneyline analysis
The Rays enter this matchup after losing a surprising series loss to the Oakland Athletics where they dropped three of four, being outscored 31-16 in a series where their bats really struggled (maybe they moved on from Austin Meadows a little early?)
The Rays plated three runs or fewer three times in that series. In those three losses, they hit .211 and left an average of 12.7 runners on base per game. And things won’t get any easier against Cease.
The right-hander is coming off a season where he held opponents to an expected batting average of .210 and led the American League in strikeouts per nine innings at 12.3. And while the Rays have cut down their strikeouts so far this season, this is still a team that struck out the third-most in the majors last season.
On the other side, Rasmussen will have his hands full with this White Sox lineup. They are expected to put up a ton of runs this season and have gotten off to a solid start ranking 11th in batting average and 15th in OPS. But they are also very patient at the dish, striking out just 6.3 times per game. That’s the third-best in the Bigs.
Rasmussen also likely won’t pitch more than five innings in this game and then will have to hand the ball off to a bullpen that has not been the dominant one we have been used to with the Rays. They have been hit by a ton of injuries and have struggled as a result, ranking 18th in ERA and 15th in opponent average through the early part of the season.
The White Sox seem to have the edge all over the board in this one. Take the home favorite at a decent price.
Prediction: White Sox moneyline (-130 at FanDuel)
Over/Under analysis
When it comes to the total, we’ve missed the boat for best number when it comes to the Under but it’s not low enough as we’re still leaning that way.
We already spoke about how the Rays bats are coming off a tough series, and it seems like that could continue as they do not match up well against Cease. But the Rays pitchers could put in some good work tonight as well.
Rasmussen has been very strong since joining the Rays and the White Sox — while being a talented lineup — have had some issues with right-handers early on this season.
Chicago ranks a shocking 25th in batting average and 29th in OPS when it comes to facing right-handed pitching so far this season.
Now, those numbers probably won’t continue for long, but getting right against the Rays is always a tough task. Bet on this one to sneak below the number.
Prediction: Under 8 (-112 at FanDuel)
Best bet
This looks like a great spot to back Cease to go Over his strikeout total of 6.5. As we’ve mentioned a couple of times, the right-hander is one of the great young strikeout artists of the American League.
That’s thanks to an electric fastball that averages nearly 97 miles per hour combined with a devastating slider that is his main put-away pitch. He stuck out 93 batters with it a season ago.
This is a good matchup with the Rays because no team believes in analytics more. And analytics say they don’t care about striking out. Last season they struck out 9.6 times per game. Only the Cubs and Marlins struck out more.
While the Rays have dropped that number to 8.3 early on this season, they haven’t faced anyone as good as Cease is at racking up the Ks.
Plus, this is a number Cease went Over 17 times in his final 28 starts last year. Look for punch-outs in bunches from Cease tonight.
Pick: Dylan Cease Over 6.5 strikeouts (-130)
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