On Tuesday, the Chicago Cubs host the Chicago White Sox in a quick two-game set between the crosstown rivals. Neither one of these teams is playing all that well at the moment, but the Cubs were able to earn a win over Corbin Burnes and the Milwaukee Brewers in their last game.
Will the momentum from that big win help David Ross’ team start this series off the right way? Keep reading our White Sox vs. Cubs MLB picks and predictions to find out.
White Sox vs Cubs odds
This odds widget represents the best odds available for each betting market from regulated sportsbooks.
The White Sox opened this game as -136 favorites and can be found as high as -145 or as low as -130. The total opened at 7 and is now popping up at 6.5 on a few sportsbooks. You’ll either need to pay up to take the Over on 6.5 or the Under on 7.
Use the live odds widget above to track any future line movements right up until first pitch and be sure to check out the full MLB odds before placing your bets.
White Sox vs Cubs predictions
Picks made on 5/3/2022 at 11:00 a.m. ET.
Click on each pick to jump to the full analysis.
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White Sox vs Cubs game info
• Location: Wrigley Field, Chicago, IL
• Date: Tuesday, May 3, 2022
• First pitch: 7:40 p.m. ET
• TV: Marquee Sports Network-Chicago, NBCS-Chicago
White Sox vs Cubs betting preview
Starting pitchers
Michael Kopech (0-0, 1.42 ERA): Kopech hasn’t made it into the sixth inning of a single start this season, but he has also allowed two or fewer earned runs in each of his four outings. The righty was once the top pitching prospect in all of baseball, so it isn’t surprising to see him dominating. He has always had an insane amount of talent, but he just needs to find some consistency.
Drew Smyly (1-2, 2.79 ERA): After posting a 4.48 ERA in 29 appearances — 23 of which were starts — last season, Smyly has looked really solid for the Cubs this season. The veteran is the exact opposite of Kopech, as he just doesn’t have a whole lot of arm talent. The lefty does, however, pitch effectively to contact, and he’ll try to avoid making any big mistakes in this game.
Weather
Be sure to monitor the gametime conditions with our MLB weather info.
Key injuries
White Sox: Eloy Jimenez OF (Out), Ryan Burr P (Out), Yermin Mercedes DH (Out), Yoan Moncada 3B (Out), Joe Kelly P (Out), Garrett Crochet P (Out), Lance Lynn P (Out).
Cubs: Clint Frazier OF (Out), Alec Mills P (Out), Wade Miley P (Out), Andrelton Simmons SS (Out), Adbert Alzolay P (Out).
Find our latest MLB injury reports.
Betting trend to know
The White Sox are 10-1 in their last 11 interleague games. Find more MLB betting trends for White Sox vs. Cubs
White Sox vs Cubs 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
Smyly has been a sturdy member of the Cubs rotation early in the season, but history suggests he’ll end up having some bad starts throughout the year. This just might end up being one of them, as the White Sox have had a lot of early success hitting against lefties in 2022.
This season, the White Sox are second in the league in batting average against southpaws, and the team also has the second-best on-base plus slugging in baseball against them. So, not only is this team getting base hits against lefties, but the group is also hitting for power. While the sample size might be small, the White Sox were also sixth in on-base plus slugging against lefties in 2021, and the team had the seventh-best batting average against them too.
One player that could do the damage for the White Sox is Tim Anderson, who is batting .571 with two homers and four RBIs in his 14 at-bats against lefties this year. The 28-year-old also hit .319 with four homers, nine doubles and 16 RBIs against southpaws in 2021, so he clearly enjoys seeing the ball from that side of the mound.
The same goes for Jose Abreu, as the slugger has a career batting average of .307 against lefties. He also has 60 homers and 185 RBIs against them, and he is also 6 for 11 with one homer and two doubles in his matchup with Smyly.
With the White Sox having a few key players that might give Smyly some trouble in this one, it’s hard not to back them against the Cubs. Kopech can occasionally struggle with his command, but he just has undeniable stuff.
Against a team that doesn’t have many consistent sources of offense, that ability to miss bats could be more than enough to help his team pick up a win. The value here is just too good.
Prediction: White Sox moneyline (-130 at WynnBet)
Over/Under analysis
As of this moment, it looks like there will be some slightly heavy winds blowing towards hitters at Wrigley Field, which is why the total on this game is so low. It’s going to be really hard for anybody in this game to hit for power, which would be huge if you’re looking to take the total in this one.
Kopech hasn’t allowed a homer to begin with this year, and it’s unlikely that will change with the conditions in his favor. Meanwhile, Smyly has allowed two homers in each of the last two games, which is part of the reason the White Sox are the play here — especially given their success against lefties. However, the veteran should be able to avoid any type of disastrous outing in this one.
The Under is also 5-1 in the Cubs’ last six games against teams with losing records, and it’s also 6-1-1 in the team’s last eight series openers.
Prediction: Under 7 (-120 at DraftKings)
Best bet
With the Cubs being the underdogs in a game with a total that is sitting at 6.5 on some sportsbooks, it’s worth taking a shot on the team scoring less than three runs at plus-money here. The Cubs have actually scored two or fewer runs in five of their last six games, and this offense would look a heck of a lot worse than it does right now if the team didn’t score 21 in a meeting with the Pirates on April 23.
Overall, it’s just not hard to see the Cubs struggling to come up with much of anything against a guy like Kopech, who should frustrate hitters here. The White Sox would just need the bullpen to show up in this game. That group can be a little shaky at times, but the pitcher-friendly conditions at Wrigley will help everybody get the job done.
Pick: Cubs team total Under 2.5 (+114 at Unibet)
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